Fallen
by PlaguedAmbition
Summary: Taken away from his friends in the Tower of Heaven Naruto is used in an acient ritual, one that makes him something more, there will be strong violance along with more mature scenes. You have been warned. NaruxErza
1. Chapter 1

**PA: NarutoxErza, that is all I really have to say, it is almost like these two were made to be together. That is where this fanfiction is going, following Naruto's path through life, along with some bumps here and there, hopefully it commes out good, as for the Fallen, more will be explained next chapter, but some of you may get the refrence.**

* * *

"W-where am I?" A young male voice asked, it sounded croaky and dry, he was surrounded by darkness, lifting his arm he noticed he could see it fine, no longer was it in the bounds it had been earlier it was strange, he felt a resistance in his movement, placing it back down he pushed himself to his feet. Looking around at the darkness around him. "Did I d-die?" He questioned fearfully.

**"Dead...no...dying? Yes." **A deep voice mused, seeming to come from all directions, Naruto let his eyes dart all around, it felt as if he was being moved, a small light appearing in front of him, some distance away and rapidly getting closer, he must be moving.

Hitting the light he found himself in a bright room, his eyes slowly adjusting to take everything in, he gasped at the scene below him, "B-but I am right here?" He questioned looking down at his blonde mop of hair below him. Strapped to a table tightly as men moved around him poking various instruments into him.

**"No, you see, what we see, we what they summon, but time, not right," **The voice spoke again, slowly appearing before the blonde, its form large and hunched over shadows that seemed to never stay still, burning red eyes looking down at blue, scanning over his body.

"W-what do I do now?" The boy questioned the large thing before him, its black skin looked to be incredibly tough. Muscles could be seen bulging on its form.

It took a tiny step forward, for itself anyway, placing it directly in front of the blonde, leaning down so that it was at eye level.

**"Uzumaki... we use you," **The black-skinned creature spoke causing the blonde to back up quickly. "W-why?" The boy questioned, his response was for the beast to chuckle a little as it moved forward, closing the recently acquired distance.

**"Humans no control cycle, for us to maintain, for you to bring back to order." **It spoke raising its and extending it towards the blonde. "C-can I save my friends?"

**"Save from tower? Yes. Tower must destroy, no room, no right use of dead."**

Without any nervousness in his actions he nodded his head, "Use me, as long as we save them I don't care what happens to me," The blonde declared putting his hand on the black on in front of him.

**"Uzumaki, tool of Fallen, our blade, pointed at target, justice, cycle, both restored, you first slayer, Fallen-Slayer, big hunter." **Pulling on the soul in front of him the creature known as a Fallen gave a small smirk, ripping the blonde through dimensions giving him enough training to complete what was needed here.

* * *

July 7 X776.

A scared and still bleeding blonde was thrown back into a cell, an older man walking over to him, checking to make sure he was alive, with a small relieved sigh he picked up the boy and dragged him over into the corner, his breathing was shallow, incredibly so.

Some of the children that were in the cell moved over to the old man looking at their friend, "Rob-san is he going to be ok?" A redheaded child spoke putting a hand forward to touch the boy, maybe a year older than herself.

"I do not know Erza-chan, he is alive for now thou-" He was frozen as the body in front of him started to repair itself, twitching and snapping bones back into place, once it was done everyone sat in silence for a few moments before blue eyes opened to the world and he took in a deep breath, like he had been underwater for too long.

It was something that Rob found strange, the boy had been breathing all along, he shouldn't have needed to intake that much, that was when he noticed something strange, Naruto had not always looked so muscular, it was nothing over the top, but there was small definition there.

Naruto slowly sat up, looking around the room, his eyes darting to each of his friends, causing a small smile to split his face, showing off his large incisors. Looking down at his arm he did what he learnt during his training, seeing the small purple magic seal appear over the top of it, slowly transforming the arm, turning it black and clawed, wisps of black smoke trailing from the claws.

"N-naruto-san?" Stuttered out Erza, this caused the blonde boy to look over at her for a moment, slowly standing and moving to the cell door, placing his hand against it and watching it melt away.

"Lets leave this tower, we only have one shot," A goofy grin tore across his face, slowly stepping out of the cell , two guards charging at the boy, with quick reflexes he sidestepped the spear of one, slamming his black hand into the mans chest, watching it contract quickly before returning to normal, the man dropping to the ground a moment later.

In a panic the other guard swung his spear to the side, attempting to strike the small blonde, only for his to grab onto it with that black hand, looking up at the guard with his cold blue eyes. **"Devour Kuraju,"** Naruto opened his mouth, a large snake coming out of his body and coiling around the guard, raising its head up and swallowing the top of the guard, slowly pushing more and more into him. "Kuraju, can you watch over the others, your help may still be needed."

The snake quickly finished with its meal, giving a small nod of its head to the blonde, looking at the two side by side, it would be hard to even think about how Kuraju came out of Naruto, the snake was almost 10 ft long. "Rob, this is our only chance, stay with Kuraju, he will guide you to the outside," Naruto spoke turning around and heading down the hall, smoke still drifting from his hand.

"What about you Naruto-kun?" The elderly man questioned seeing the blonde was not heading in the same direction as the rest of them. "I made a promise of sorts, I have to keep it and free the others," Naruto gave a small smile to the others, closing his eyes in the process, "Now get out of here, I'll catch up," They listened to his words slowly taking down the halls, only Rob catching what left his mouth next, "Maybe..."

* * *

The snake did its job, leading the group outside, the docks not too far from them, Rob huddled the kids together and got them onto the boat putting the propellers into the water, Kuraju joining them, it was that moment that Rob knew what to do, pulling the cord he heard the kids protests but he quickly silenced them, taking off from the docks leaving the island behind them, Kuraju watched them leave, lifting its head up into the air and flicking its forked tongue out tasting the fear that lingered.

Ten minutes later, the tower behind them erupted in a torrent of flames, reaching high into the sky, Rob felt a single tear fall down his face, he didn't know of anyone that could survive something like that, the children in the ship fell asleep sans for Erza, her eyes locking with Rob's own. "W-why did we leave them all behind!" Roared the redhead waking the others, a few other boats slowly joined beside them all heading back to the shore.

"Naruto knew what he had to do, despite knowing what it might cost him, he did it anyway. He is a better mage than most," Erza just shook her head not believing what he was hinting at.

The blue-haired male of their group slowly stood, waving over one of the nearby boats, after sharing a few words with them, they shook hands, swapping positions, Erza wanted to join her friends as they jumped onto the other boat but Rob held her back. "Jellal!" She called, the blue-haired boy raised his hand into the air.

"Don't worry Erza, you guys head back me and the others will go make sure everyone got out," Jellal gave a bright smile, Erza and Rob gave a small nod, both continuing forward as Jellal turned back, an evil glint in his eyes.

* * *

July 7, X777

Days later, or at least what felt like days, Kuraju slithered his way onto a beach, his black scales with purple markings a completely different contrast to everything else around him, opening his mouth wide a few strands of blonde were able to be seen, a hand slowly made its way out, pulling the body further out of the snake. Slight burns still remaining on his face, slowly but surely healing, with great difficulty he slowly stood, turning around to look at the snake he had just come out of, his body was a great deal larger than he remembered, looking around he had no idea where he was.

"Is it as uncomfortable for you?" The blonde got a quick shake of the head, "Are the others around here?" His question was answered in the same manner as the one before, causing the blonde to sigh. "They must have already gone to wherever they had set their minds on. What should we do then?"

_'Find food. Find Clothe. Find prey, we hunters,' _The snake replied inside Naruto's head causing him to sigh.

"Teaching you to speak better has got to be in there somewhere as well." If snakes could display emotion, he would picture that Kura was giving him a deadpan expression right now. _'Many words, already known, speak basic, easier interpretation.'_

Its forked tongue struck at the air for a few moments, its head spinning around before finally settling on a direction to look. _'Friend, smell blue boy, but not blue boy, same time, no sense.'_

"Yeah, 'easier interpretation' my ass, you saying you smell Jellal but at the same time it isn't him?" Naruto questioned twitching his hand watching the bones clatter against one another inside of it, raising his head he looked in the direction of this Jellal, but not Jellal person, giving a small shake before stretching his mouth wide, he didn't have to tell the snake twice, watching as it slithered up his body, rubbing all the sand from itself before crawling down his throat again, once again proving that magic defies every known law to man.

Giving a small cough the blonde raised his arm, wiping away at the corner of his mouth, his body was actually feeling pretty good now, already feeling Kura helping to speed up his healing. opening his mouth a little Kura's head popped out checking to make sure the duo were moving in the same direction, flicking its tongue a few times the large snake nodded before receding back into its 'host body'.

Coming over the top of the hill Naruto threw his hand up in there air followed by a call of "Oi princess, wait up will ya?" The blue-haired boy seemed to freeze in his place, twitching his head around in a frightened manner, waiting for the blonde he had never seen before to close the distance. Once the two were in front of one another, Naruto took a big sniff of the air letting out a small gasp, "Wow Kura, you were right."

The blue boy even shared the same tattoo as his friend from the tower, some of their scent was the same but there was a fair bit of difference too, one major thing stood out though, this boy didn't seem to have an origin in his body. "You're not from around here are you?"

"I am here on important business, if you will excuse me," The blue haired child tried to push past, Naruto let his arm break apart and block the path, Jellal but not Jellal, stared at Naruto for a few seconds, slowly letting his eyes drift over to the incredibly long arm, that seemed to have its short length extended by snakes.

"So how about I help you for a while?" The blondes words caught the other child by surprise, "W-why?" He stuttered out in shock. "You don't even know what I will ask from you?"

"Simple, you look like a friend of mine, he was a pretty cool dude, so you have to be the same right?" Naruto's simple way of putting it made Kura's scales crawl in disgust. Extending his hand out he gave a large smile, "Call me Naruto,"

"My name is Jellal, I don't know why you would offer your aid, but I guess I should thank you."

"Wow you even got the same name as him, are you like from a parallel world or something?" Seeing the boy stiffen Naruto just shook his head, "No freaking way, what am I like over there huh huh?"

* * *

February 12 X778

Seven months passed quickly for the two boys, even going as far as to make a name for themselves, 'Mystic Snake', this was mostly due to the code names they called one another, while it would not be such an issue with Naruto having his name called, but having a Jellal that looks and sounds like Jellal walking around being known as Jellal while there is already another Jellal, that felt like a giant headache Naruto could do without.

So now, they were Mystogan and Snake. Mystogan had taken to wrapping his body up fully in order to hide his appearance, it also gave him a more roguish look about him, Naruto had tried something very similar, only he let Kura help decide his clothing, needless to say, Naruto now looked the part of a Fallen-slayer, whatever that meant.

A dark purple cloth cowl covered his head, leaving his face exposed, his iceburg blue eyes glowing in the slight shadow they were given, his chest was left exposed, showing that he had been working out since he joined up with his blue haired partner, his feet were mostly covered, but under the long purple flowing cover you could make out the black combat boots, silver buckles on the side to fasten them tightly. The blonde's hands were wrapped up in gauze, hanging almost lifelessly by his sides.

Currently the two stood in a large outpost a mission board in front of them with one thought running through their heads 'We _need_ rent money.' Mystogan walked forward and took a request, it payed well, a high end A-rank request, it would also prove to be a good test of their skills. Naruto only had one thing to say, "Never eaten a wyvern before."

The exclamation caused a few people around them to freeze, looking at the two boys, they couldn't have been much older than 13, maybe 15 at best. With a large smile on Naruto's face the covered boy handed the request to man behind the counter, seeing his eyes widen a little, looking at the boys closely for a few moments, stamping it with a simple shrug. It was simple, if they died he didn't have to pay them.

* * *

Febuary 14

The request was done, as always there had been some complications, like right now Mystogan was in getting the rewards while Naruto was outside laying in the back of a small waggon, small groans leaving his pained body, a few moments later his blue-haired friend exited the build, a large sack of money in his hand, sitting in the front of the waggon, he cracked the lashes watching as the horse slowly started to pull them along. "I told you it would be bad for you. Did you listen no?"

"He started it," Naruto rebutted clutching at his stomach.

Mystogan shook his head, he had also asked inside if anyone knew of a good healer, normally something like this wouldn't worry him, but it had been over a day so far, Naruto normally healed much faster than that. "Honestly, who thinks eating a wyvern is a good idea?"

Naruto gave a large groan as he rolled over, "I already said he started it."

"He growled at you." Mystogan deadpanned behind his covers, Naruto was incredibly smart at times, it was just redicluos how stupid he could be at other points in his life.

"Yeah, he was sizing us up, I just ate him first," Naruto responded, growling for a little bit, "Shut up Kura."

Mystogan didn't need to hear the snake to know it was poking fun at Naruto. The healer was a fair bit out of their way, maybe it was for the best though, giving the duo some time to just be kids for a bit. He just hoped it was worth talking to that very strange bald man, what kind of man wears make up anyway?

Two days passed, no improvement had started to show in Naruto's condition, it was rediculus Mystogan had seen the boy eat spoiled meat like it was nothing. Not to mention the constant groaning and writhing was starting to make his sleep escape him, the blue-haired mage gave a sigh of relief as the entrence to the forst came into view. It was aproaching the afternoon on the third day, traveling further in he found a pink-haired woman talking to a group of white-haired children.

All their heads turned at the sound of horse hooves hitting the ground, the older woman stood in front of the children with a scowl on her face. "Why are you in my forest human?" She all but sneered

"I am looking for a woman by the name of Porlyusica, I require her aid to help my friend," Mystogan stated calmly, it would do no good to anger someone while he had an injured Naruto with him.

"That is I, what is wrong with him human?"

Without missing a beat the blue-haired mage gave a small chuckle, "He ate a wyvern..." He noticed the eyes go wide of everyone in front of him, the pink-haired woman moving forward and taking a look in the back of the wagon, moving the boy around a little and examining him. "Umm, don't open his mouth just yet," He tried to warn only to hear a scream of surprise and felt Kura slither up next to him.

The children in front of him shivering at the sight of the large snake, Mystogan raised his hand slowly and the snake slithered under it letting him pat him slowly. "This is Kura, he lives in Naruto, my sick friend. Normally he can eat anything even rotten meat, he might feel sick for a little bit but he heals quickly, ready to go in a few minutes, its been four days though and I started to get worried."

Letting out a small hum Porlyusica waved her hand, "Fine bring him with you, I will do what I can to help, once I am done though, you leave. I don't like humans that much."

"Uh Naruto is hardly human.." Mystogan sputtered out, I mean who can live with a snake larger then themselves inside their body?

"I never said he had to."

* * *

He felt pretty good, that was the first thing he noticed, no pains in his stomach, now aches no nothing really. Sitting up he looked around a little, his blue eyes taking in everything around him. "Oi mister you need to rest." A young voice came from a little way away.

Turning his head, he found himself face to face with a small white-haired child. "Are you the one that looked after me?" He questioned feeling around him, his cowl like hood was still in place, hiding the majority of his blonde hair, he felt a little empty though, placing his hand against his stomach he started to panic when he got no reaction.

"Its ok mister, the big snake is sleeping under the bed, he was so scary at first but your friend showed us that he is actually pretty cool." He saw the happy expression on her face, causing him to give a slight grin.

A few moments passed and Kura slithered up onto the bed, wrapping around Naruto softly, giving his form of a hug. _'Lissanna her. Mirajane sister, Elfman brother. Porlyusica pink woman. Good to see you feet.' _Kura spoke in his broken and basic english, Naruto always found it a little strange that only he could hear him.

Naruto patted Kura and looked at the girl in front of him. "Lissana, can you show me to who looked after me?" The small girl froze at his words, not understanding how he knew her name, with a small smile he scratched the chin of Kura, watching him flick his tongue out into the air. "Kura told me, he says you are pretty nice, so are Mirajane and Elfman, apparently Mystogan and Porlyusica have butted heads a few times though." Naruto spoke, slowly being released from his hug and standing to his feet, extending his arm for Kura, the snake taking it and returning to its home.

"Wow, he really does live inside of you.." Mused the small girl, pointing to his stomach.

A voice from just outside broke her concertration, "Lissana he isn't going to respond, Porlyusica said he would still be out for a few days." This voice was also female, seeing as it refered to Porlyusica, he figured it must be Mirajane.

"But he is awake Mira-nee!" The small girl in front of him excalimed a little too loud, he heard the steps of people outside the door.

"Lissana just because his eyes are open doesn't mean he is... awake?" Mira, yeah this was deffinetly Mira he figured froze in her words as she opened the door seeing him standing there wide away next to her younger sister. "Well, umm I guess you should come with us?" She waved her hand nervously as slowly walked from the room, Lissana reached up and grabbed onto his arm pulling him along.

"Come on Snake man," The small cheer in her voice was quite amusing, deciding he should, he let her pull him along, coming to a much larger room, a few people were sitting around, he noticed who everyone was right away, or at least figured he did.

"You are up pretty early, I expected maybe tomorrow at the earliest, Mystogan really wasn't joking around you do heal quickly." The pink-haired woman chimed walking over and giving him a small glass, a strange green liquard was inside of it. Raising a brow at her and the substance she gave him a scoff. "Its what I have been forcing down you to fix you up, such a strange boy you are."

Nodding to her he pulled the glass up to his lips and emptied its contents, feeling the strange, slimy substance run down his throat, shrivering at the feel. "Thanks for helping me back on my feet," The pink-haired woman gave a small nod.

"Now can you return the favour I extended to you and please escourt these three to the guild in the nearby town when you leave?" She questioned/demanded nicely.

Naruto was about to speak but his blue-haired partner beat him to it, "We will be happy to help, it is the least we can do to repay you for your efforts, Porlyusica-san."

Sheepishly Naruto brought one of his bandaged arms up and scratched the back of his hooded head. "Yeah, its the least we can do, when do you think we will be ready to go?" He asked, still wanting to help, Jellal who is Jellal but not Jellal with his quest.

"You could leave the moment you woke up, say hello to Makarov for me." The older woman waved her hand dismissvily, Naruto looked around and saw the Srauss siblings all nervously holding packs on their backs, they hadn't been there a moment ago causing him to sweatdrop.

Mystogan walked forward and placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder, causing the blonde to look up at him, "Are you ok to move Snake?"

"A little stiff, nothing a good walk won't clear out though Mystogan." Naruto replied back tapping the boy on his shoulder. "Lets get moving, we still have heaps to do right?"

Mystogan frowned behind his mask, slowly giving a small nod, Naruto seemed ready to help anyone who asked, it was part of the reason he stopped the boy from talking before, he couldn't imagine that he would of just stopped at escourted the children to a new home.

The group departed from the house, hands waving in the air, saying their goodbyes as they trudged through the forest, the town was not as far away as they had thought, it was a little strange though, a lot of people were looking at Naruto and Mystogan intently.

"The people are?"

"Yes I have noticed it too, let us just move through quickly."

They were able to pick up the faint sounds of their names, different tiltes going alongside them, honestly they thought they were not that big of a deal, but apparently to the people of this town they were.

Naruto looked up at the guild building in front of him, 'Fairy Tail' it was very familiar, he just couldn't quite place his finger on where he had heard it, with his arms hanging limply by his sides he continued forward, letting Mystogan open the doors for them, leading the way for the Strauss family, Naruto following up the rear, theiur path led them straight to the bar of the guild, Naruto's eyes widening at who was standing behind it. "Rob?" He questioned, the elderly man looked down at the boy in front of him, watching him pull the hood back and show his features to the world, his blonde hair sat at the length of his chin, a few strands passing over his eyes, the rest looked like it was styled to look messy.

"Naruto? I didn't know you made it off that island." Rob stated in a shcoked expressions, the boy had changed quite a bit.

"Kura told me you got to the boats all right, but when I made it to land there wasn't anyone withing range of his nose, I wasn't exactly sure what happened but I figured you must have all moved on." Naruto explained, filling in what had happened, telling some of the travels him and Mystogan had been on, their conversation was put on hold by a voice speaking up behind them.

"Rob-san, I am ready for my lessons," It was a voice Naruto deffinetly knew, slowly turning around on his feet he gave a small nervous smile.

"H-hey Erza..." He mumbled out, watching the shock roll over her face, a grin slowly splitting her face as she ran forward slamming into his chest, her arms latching onto him tightly. Small sobs were heard through the halls, slowly he brought his hands up and placed them around her.

"Rob, is this that Naruto?" Makarov asked looking at the blonde in question, he had heard of the man next to him, Mystogan, meaning Naruto must be Snake.

"Yeah Makky, this is _that_ Naruto." The words seemed to make Makarov happy, standing up on the bench and trying to get the blondes attention.

"Naruto, oi Naruto, what brings you here?" Makarovs words caused confusion in the blonde for a moment, a sudden realization came over his face though a few moments ltatter.

Parting from Erza much to her reluctance he waved his bandaged arms over the Strauss family. "I ate something I wasn't meant to so I had to see a healer, ended up being some old-lady in a forest, she was really nice, in return for her helping me get better we were to escort these kids here, that pretty much brings us to now."

"Ahh, and what can I do for you young ones?"

"We want to join your guild!" The three spoke at once, nearly causing Makarov to fall from the bench, Naruto let a small smile work over his face as he drew his hood up once more, Erza had turned around to see what the masters reaction would be, leaivng the two wandering mages to their own devices. Just as they were about to reach the door, an old hand clamped down on the handle, stopping their sneaky exit.

Looking up they saw the too sweet of a smile on Rob's face, "Just going to run off again Naruto? Not even planning on saying goodbye?" He managed to raise his tone just high enough for Erza to hear him causing a slight gasp to spread through the halls.

Mystogan saw Naruto twinge from the look Erza gave him, she was lonely, and if he wasn't mistake this wast he redhead that his partner talked about at times. "Y-you're not going to leave are you N-naruto-kun?" Her questioned caused the blonde to panic looking across at Mystogan for help.

"We have been pretty busy lately, maybe taking some time off would be best for us." Mystogan stated, his hands in the thinking position, under his mask he was smiling at how happy the redhead ecame from his words, watching her run forward and take Naruto's hand.

"Come on Naruto, you need to come meet everyone!" Her exclimation was put to stop as Naruto didn't seem to be buding, instead he opened his mouth wide, Kura slipping out and causing a minor panic attack inside the guild. The large snake warpped around Erza softly and positioned itself in front of her face.

"Kura said not to forget about him," Naruto started and patted the snake on his head, "and this is how he hugs people, its scary as hell the first few times but he is just a big softie really," His words did little to intill hope into Rob, he saw this snake swallow a man like it was nothing, then again it was impossibly large to be able to fit inside Naruto, now that he thought about it, the snake did not make much sense at all.

He did the rounds, meeting the fortune telling girl, the striper, the flame brain and a few of the others. Even staring down Laxus for a time, both giving the other a small smirk. In the end him and Mystogan were talked into joining the guild.

Apparently Erza and Makarov could be very persuasivee when they wanted to be, now Naruto had his symbol on his right peck, a scarlet red in colour, matching the blonde one on Erza's left arm, Mystogan getting his in a pale blue on his shoulder blade, the Strauss sisters both getting theirs in white, Mira's on her left thigh while Lissana's was placed on her left shoulder. Elfman get a black one on the left side of his neck, each sporting a goofy smile on their faces.

* * *

**PA: Thats the first chapter of Fallen, a fanfiction about Naruto and Erza in the Fairy Tail universe. I feel that this fight be an interesting twist and while the starting is similar to some of the other Erza/Naru fics, its ending will be much different.**


	2. Chapter 2

**PA: Wow I wasn't expecting reviews that quickly, I am glad that you guys are finding my new works interesting.**

**Ehh: I can see what you mean but in cannon 'Jellal' was still a member of Fairy Tail while he was trying to stop the anima, and while they did join a little earlier than in cannon, there will be a fair bit of adventuring before we reach the start of the anime.**

**Guest: The inner turmoil of Always Chasing will not be present in this fic.**

**Mzr90: Cana will be the pairing for the next story I release, I already had a few thoughts running around before you mentioned it and I agree, neither of those two are used often in crossovers.**

**ultima-owner: That question is answered in this chapter.**

**Director Maliwan: It was a little faced paced, and while the joining of Fairy Tail could have been held back a year or so, I kind of wanted him to tag along with the Strauss siblings. I don't mind you trying to guess the ending, but I don't want to spoil it either, but I guess I could say that the Fallen ones will be a large part of it.**

**yurei king: There will be some snake techniques he will be using from the Sannin, plus his appearence is somewhat based off of the man.**

**Disclaimer: I own neither Naruto or Fairy Tail.**

* * *

June 1 X778

Naruto stood at the bar talking to Makarov while Mystogan was over by the request board, everyone else was well, asleep. Naruto just shook his head as he finished his drink, putting it down on the bench along with the payment, "We screwed up once, _almost_ letting someone see your face, do you really need to put them to sleep every time?"

The blue-haired mage turned on his feet, slowly walking down the steps with a request in hand, "Simple S-rank, near our intended location, also I am ok with it if we go back to using my _actual_ name," He stated simply, everyone was rather tight-lipped about how Naruto became an S-rank so quickly, all they knew was that the magic council _requested _it to be done.

This was the main reason that Mystogan was allowed upstairs, neither of the duo trusted Naruto to take a request, the last one was the very reason for his promotion. It also earnt him so rivalry from the other resident blonde, beating Laxus to the rank by a month.

They were not the best of friends.

"8 million reward, gives us 4 each, you aren't going to blow it all in one sitting again are you?" Mystogan questioned causing the guildmaster to widen his eyes.

"Do tell how you manage that Naruto?"

"I have a problem," Stated Naruto rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

His partner just shook his head and got the stamp from the guildmaster on the request, "A problem is an understatement, you really do have strange tastes."

"It helps with my growth as a mage, the more things I eat the better I develop," Naruto had been pretty open with the two of them about his strange gift, while he couldn't do anything like eat elements, he did gain a portion of the properties of things he ate, for example from the wyvern his skin became much harder.

"Yes yes I know, but really, eating spiders just isn't right,"

Makarov stiffened trying to imagine such a thing while Naruto just opened his mouth, letting a small amount of drool hit the floor, the others watching as it burnt away, "Thats what I got from the spiders, toxin glands, plus the snakes allowed me to get control over it, not to mention these cool slits in my eyes,"

"And the monkey?"

"More acrobatic,"

"The bull?"

"Strength,"

"Ok how about that freaky jelly fish?"

Naruto had to think for a moment before he dragged back his hood and lifted up the hair that was slightly covering his eyes, "I got these cool purple lines near my eyes, I don't know about anything else but these were worth it," The blonde stated putting his outfit back on and giving a nod.

Naruto had extended the length of his cowl, letting it drape down rather far on his arms hiding his guild symbol, his reason was he didn't want any of their actions to affect the guild, but it really didn't make much sense since they still took requests from the guild, Mystogan figured it was just because of Naruto being stranger than most.

"How about you two go and do the request so the others can wake up and get back on with their day?" Makarov spoke with an exasperated sigh ending his sentence.

"Trying to get rid of us so quickly Jiji?" Naruto joked causing a small scowl to form on the gnomes face.

"No I just want my guild back, it's _too_ quiet with you around here!" Roared the small man causing Naruto to put his hands up defensively.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small dagger, it had a fancy hilt and a strange blade, "For Erza when she gets up, she would be pretty pissed if I didn't bring her back something from the last job," Naruto started to turn around when the master spoke stopping him in his tracks, "You sure you two aren't dating, plus I think she would be more angry at the fact you were here again and didn't say hi to her."

"W-we're just friends Jiji, plus I can't exactly say hi if she is asleep can I?" He gave a small glare to his partner who merely shrugged his shoulders.

"It's your own fault, anyway let's go Snake," The blue-haired mage spun on his feet walking out of the hall, Naruto tailing right behind him waving a hand over his shoulder as the doors closed, stopping the sleeping spell on the guild.

"Freakin Mystic Snake, do they really need to do this every time?" Cana spoke with a frown, having spilt her drink all over her dress.

Natsu stood up breathing a small ball of fire, "I'll kick their ass," He tried running for the door only to trip on a trail of ice.

"Try learning to run first flame brain"

"Gray your clothes," Cana pointed out sighing at the reoccurring thing.

"Not again!"

Erza in the meantime walked up to the master with a sad look on her face, "He came back again didn't he?"

The master gave a small frown followed by a nod, "He left you a present, he wants you to keep training and keep the guild in line while he is gone, he wishes you well," Makarov handed her the strange dagger and saw her eyes bulge a little before gripping it tightly and bowing her head.

"Thank you master,"

"Naruto, why do you care so much about these weaklings," Muttered the blonde-haired dragon slayer from the top floor, looking down open the guild in disgust, "Things will be changing when I become in charge."

* * *

"Is this really the smartest idea Snake?" Drawled out Mystogan, the pair were standing on top of a cliff, water splashing up against the rocks below them.

Naruto turned around and gave a big grin before jumping off, the blue-haired mage ran to the edge to see his friend hovering just below him, large bat like wings spreading out from his back.

"Fine I get your point, do you think they can support my weight as well? I don't want to jump down only to find you don't have the strength to carry us both," Stated the more mature of the duo, Naruto merely flew up and grabbed onto his partners shoulders lifting them both into the air.

"Yeah you actually aren't heavy at all, anyway let's go!" The blonde roared flying off the edge and going down into a nose dive, only breaking at the end and spreading his wings out far sending water all around them, looking down he noticed Mystogan looked a little more blue than normal, "You ok buddy?"

"Don't ever do that again... please," He pleaded with the blonde causing said blonde to grin wildly.

Naruto tilted his head to the side all of a sudden, turning around in the air and flying into a cavern, the walls were pretty close to rubbing against his wings, it was something he noticed as he had to be more careful of how he was flying. "There is something strange up ahead, I think it's what we are looking for,"

"Which one?" Questioned the currently helpless mage.

Naruto dropped him to the ground which was not too far away, quickly extending his arm and coiling it around the throat of a large snake, behind it was a large stone pillar. "Both I am guessing this is the basilisk?"

"Naruto don't even-"

"I wonder what it taste like?" The blonde questioned before biting into its neck causing it to flail around wildly smashing the pillar in half Naruto was quite enjoying his meal, meanwhile Mystogan was busy dodging the large tail that was bringing the cave down on top of them, sinking his head in further a loud crunch filtered through the room, the large scaled beast dropping to the ground with a thud, Naruto standing on its back sinking his teeth in further to rip out more and more flesh.

"Hey buddy, we cool to go yet?" The blue-haired mage questioned from what could be called a safe distance, he learnt quickly that Naruto sometimes got a little _too _into feeding, ripping his head off to the side he took a large chunk of the basilisk with him, slowly munching away on it.

A few minutes passed before he let out a satisfied sigh, "Yeah we are sweet, that actually tasted pretty good, we might want to hurry up though, I am starting to feel a little sick,"

"I TOLD YOU NOT TO, BUT DO YOU EVER LISTEN TO ME?! NO OF COURSE NOT THAT WOULD MAKE SENSE!" Mystogan roared causing Naruto to pick at his ear.

"So do you want a lift out or you just going to walk?"

"Just get us out of here you idiot," He muttered to the blonde causing Naruto to smile wildly, jumping into the air and spreading his wings wide, swooping down and picking up his partner as they flew through the cavern once again, it was by far the easiest mission they had done yet, then again Jellal could not think of many people who would be game enough to try to eat a basilisk, let alone how many would actually be able to pull it off, he started trying to make a list to pass the time as 'they' flew , breaking out of the caves and making it out into the open again, where Naruto could really put his speed to the test.

Jellal looked up at the pained look that came over his friends face, it passed a few moments later before coming back again, "You ok Snake?"

"Freaking peachy, this hurts like a bitch but I want to cover as much ground as possible."

"Good thought, but you see I can't exactly swim, plus I don't know if Kura would be able to drag both of us to land, so uh, how about you fly up the cliff and soar through the skies up there? I can reduce our impact to next to nothing if we fall, but again I can't exactly swim," Jellal spoke nervously looking down at the water below them.

He felt their direction change, now they were heading straight up at crazy speeds, he was more than a little impressed at how quickly Naruto could move with his wings. "You're always so fussy Mystogan, but fine I can see the logic behind it, also you are so learning how to swim, that is just stupid," Naruto bit out, it was nowhere near as bad as the wyvern, but even still it hurt, just enough to make him flinch every few seconds.

"Sorry not all of us had enough time to learn how,"

"I ate some fish, picked it up from them. At the age of three I got to see my parents killed before my eyes, trying to stop the slavers from invading our village, they took down a few before being overrun, after people saw that they stopped fighting back. I then spent the next few years helping to build a tower that would lead to the end of humanity, I was 'handpicked' for a new experiment, as I was dying I met a Fallen, at least that is what it called itself, they taught me most of what I know now and gave me my powers, with the promise that I destroyed the tower, I did. Nearly blew myself up in the process, apparently drifted through the water inside the stomach of Kura for a few months, then met you," Naruto looked down at the mage in his arms with a small frown on his face, "That short little explanation just summed up my entire life, how is that for some time?"

"S-sorry, I didn't know," Jellal muttered clenching his fists, he had thought his life was pretty rough, he had nothing on his blonde friend, how could one keep smiling even after all of that?

"Yeah I know, I went on a little rant, how about we just forget about what I said eh?" He looked down again giving a small smile, his face scrunching up in pain again.

Mystogan shook his head, "How do you keep going on?"

"Don't know, guess I just enjoy helping people, you have something you need to get done, I'll help you with it until I can't anymore, it's as simple as that in my head," His entire body jolted as he finished causing him to sigh and lower himself down to the ground, "I can't keep flying anymore, Kura lets trade places."

Jellal assumed he received confirmation from his partner as the blonde opened his mouth, a much larger snake than he remembered made its way out, nearly a metre wide and three long, it still shocked him everytime he saw it even though he knew that Kura was stored inside a different dimension inside of Naruto. Seeing a giant snake come out of someones mouth was just not normal, let alone then watching the snake swallow the person it just came out of.

Kura sat there looking at the blue-haired mage for a while, Jellal decided to speak seeing as he couldn't hear the snake, "You want me to jump on?" Receiving a nod from the snake he did just that as it took of through the forests, moving much faster than he had thought it would.

* * *

"Master, can you teach me how to stay awake when Mystic Snake comes to the guild?" Erza questioned hoping to find out some sort of trick, instead the white-bearded man gave a small chuckle.

"It is about having more magical power than the caster of the spell, Laxus is almost there he gets really drowsy but can stay awake at least, that should be a testament to how strong the user is," Makarov spoke with a proud smile at the strength of his mage, soon turning it to a frown at the downtrodden look on the scarlet-haired girl.

Erza hung her head a little before nodding, "I guess that makes sense, otherwise it would become too easy to bypass the magic," She stated as the doors to the guild swung open, a man with a purple hood walking in by himself, walking straight past everyone else and walking up to the master.

"We finished the request, Mystogan is hanging around on the outside of town, apparently he wants to see my luck with a request," Stated Naruto, he reached around his back and pulled out a large bag dumping it onto the table, "It's just some things Porlyusica may be interested in,"

"N-naruto?" Questioned the girl causing the blonde to turn to her and let out a small whistle.

"Well look who has grown," He stated causing her to nod

"Yeah you're so tall now," It was fair enough the boy was standing at 5ft6 incredibly tall for his age.

"I was uh, talking about you Erza," Naruto deadpanned not exactly thinking his height had changed too much.

She gave a sheepish laugh and rubbed the back of her head, "Hey is anyone actually seeing this?" Gray asked watching as _the _Erza was joking around with the Snake. Most had forgotten about it being Naruto under there, having only seen his face once or twice.

"So Erza has a soft spot for tall dark and spooky," Cana stated raising her juice and watching the small conversation, only to spit it out when the redhead gave a huge blush after receiving a hug from the man.

Naruto calmly walked up stairs, not exactly paying any real attention to the conversation that the others were having, stopping at the board as he heard the floors creak behind him, with a heavy sigh he spoke, "Laxus, everytime I come to the guild you are always here, do you even go on requests anymore?"

The blonde-haired dragon slayer stepped forward and rested his hand on the board, looking Naruto at where he presumed his eyes were, "Having you given any thought to teaming up with me?"

It was an offer that had been put out there once they both reached S-class, Naruto did not seem to be too thrilled by the idea, "I already told you Laxus, I am a part of Mystic Snake, why don't you try someone else?"

"No one else got requested to be promoted by the magic council, thats a pretty big achievement Naruto."

Naruto seemed to big ignoring him though , now looking at the board and finding the request he wanted, a little more difficult than their last one was meant to be, but he had faith in his partner, "I am leaving now, try to take a request sometime soon Laxus,"

Being fobbed off like he was nothing didn't sit right with the blonde dragon slayer, gritting his teeth he threw a punch out only for Naruto to spin and grab the fist, slowly applying more pressure until a small crack was heard, lifting his leg up he landed a small knee into the blondes chest sending him down to ground level causing a few screams of surprise from those down there.

Naruto slowly came down the steps with a scroll in hand getting it stamped by the master who had risen his brows, "Keeps asking me to ditch Mystogan and team up with him, didn't like it when I started ignoring him, anyway cya Master, Erza and say hey to Rob for me," He spun around and waved his hand as he left uttering only a few more words as he passed the groaning dragon slayer, "Silly Laxus, don't go chasing after a snake that's not interested."

"H-he took down Laxus... like it was nothing?" Muttered Cana in a state of awe.

"Snake is Naruto, how do I keep forgetting that?" Whispered Gray inspecting the downed blonde.

Cana just shook her head, "Gray clothes."

"Every time?"

"OI SNAKE FIGHT ME!" raored Natsu, sprinting across some tables and heading to the shutting guild doors, in the blink of an eye Erza closed the distance and bopped him on top of the head with a tired sigh.

"Don't be such a bother Natsu, he has work to do."

"Well Erza is back to normal again, thats good right Nee-chan?" Questioned Elfman as he looked around the hall quickly, not exactly expecting Naruto to have grown so quickly.

Laxus let out another groan as he slowly got to his knees, looking around at everyone staring at him, "Of course, you all see that little display and are shocked, grow up _that_ was a Fairy Tail wizard," he bit out walking to the back of the hall and heading to the training grounds outside, "You're fast Naruto, but I will shall the guild which one of us is the strongest."

* * *

January 1 x779

Naruto was standing there in the middle of a field, magic circles appearing all around him as he dodged, narrowly avoiding the different spells from the varying elements, kicking his foot into the ground and digging up a large amount of earth before kicking it across at Mystogan, mentioned mage pulled a staff from his back and carved it through the rock before starting a new spell, causing Naruto to dodge again.

"Your speed is getting better Mysto, either that or my old age is catching up to me," called Naruto as a bright orange beam flew over his head.

Mystogan shook his head and let out a small sigh, "Why do I have to do this again? The magic council asked for you, not me."

"Its cause we are a team, plus I can't leave you behind when we are about to go off and do something awesome," Shouted Naruto as he jumped into the air to dodge another two beams, it was only when five circles appeared around him on all sides did he drop his rather childish nature, taking on a more serious side, **"Grasp of the Fallen,"** Out of the ground came a large hand, clutching tightly around Naruto as the blasts impacted.

Mystogan looked on in worry for a moment, the smoke was impairing his vision to the point where he couldn't see what had happened, a small breeze flew through clearing it away leaving him rather breathless at the shadowy hand where Naruto had been moments before.

It opened up wide revealing a perfectly unharmed blonde, "Not bad, I don't know many that could block that, keep up the good work Mysto," Like that he had returned to the blonde that Jellal knew and could say was friends with.

"Snake you are meant to be testing him!" Roared Makarov from the sidelines causing the blonde to chuckle sheepishly, having almost forgotten about the fact that this was Mystogan's trail for S-rank.

Bringing his hand up to his mouth Naruto gave a small chuckle, "So I should stop holding back right?" His question received a nod from the guildmaster casing him to open his mouth wide, Jellal started to prepare a new spell, there was something about Naruto that made illusion mage next to useless against him, that had taken out a large part of his arsenal, but he was really hoping he wouldn't have to fight against Kuraju as well as his blonde-haired teammate.

"Kura, we are testing Mystogan, so go pretty hard just don't eat or inject him with killing venom," Naruto spoke as the large snake curled around him in a defensive posture, he looked at Naruto for a few moments causing the blonde to scratch his chin, "Take to the skies Kura, we will fight him from both stages," The snake nodded as a large pair of wings sprouted from its back much like Naruto's own.

Jellal let out a low whistle at the action, "I take it everything you can do he can do too?" The blue-haired mage questioned receiving a small nod from his purple cowled partner. He ran through a quick set of hand signs and looked across at Naruto, smiling beneath his mask, "**Ground Shattering Wave,"** Three waves of energy flew at Naruto.

The blonde watched the approaching waves with caution, moving only when he deemed it needed stepping between two of them and letting them pass right by him, leaving a tear in his cowl, the whole thing happened incredibly fast which is why most people were surprised to see the blonde standing like nothing had happened as an explosion shook the ground behind him.

Jellal was about to prepare another spell as Kura dove down, tearing the ground apart and taking a stave with him, "That would have worked against most Mystogan, sadly you know how fact my reaction time is," Naruto stated looking at the tear in his hood, bringing up his right hand and wiping at the small cut on his cheek, "Even still you nearly got me," Holding his hand out and showing the blood from his cut.

**"Five layered Magic Circle-"** Started Jellal only to top as he saw Naruto bring his hands up in front of his mouth,

**"Whisper o-**"

"I surrender," The blue-haired mage called out shocking a few of the spectators, meanwhile he looked to his right and saw Kura standing there with bared fangs, "Didn't see you get so close. You know you are much faster than you look Kura."

"Mystogan why did you give up so quickly?" Questioned the master, as he walked onto the field, Kura looked around for a moment before finding Erza and coiling around her, the large snake rather enjoying her company.

"Simple Master, as Snakes partner I know most of his abilities, the spell he was about to use, I don't have any defense against, Jura from Lamia Scale can block it but it takes a lot out of him," Jellal pointed over to Naruto who was casually walking over with his hands behind his head.

Makarov rubbed at his chin for some time looking between the pair, "What do you think Snake?"

"A little rough around the edges, if he could increase the rate of which he could cast his spells than he will become a real force to reakon with, personally I think he is ready, he has been helping me with S-rank requests for nearly a year now," Stated the blonde giving a small shrug, "Either way I will still treat him the same as normal, he will take S-ranks with me and we will continue doing what we do, all that will change is his classification."

Makarov mauled the thought over in his head, Naruto had a point, this team had been tearing through the S-ranked requests like they were child's play, "I will send the papers off to the council, congratulations Mystogan, keep up the good work," The master patted the boy on the back and walked back towards the Guildhall, letting the other mages walk forward and offer him praise, he looked around to find Naruto and talk to him only to see the blonde had vanished.

* * *

"You're not really a big fan of crowds are you?" Erza questioned walking closer to the ledge that Naruto was sitting on, Kura right behind her, the blonde-haired mage gave a small chuckle.

"I like people, its just that today is Mystogan's day, no need for me to stick around, I will congratulate him later, maybe buy him a new stave as well, yeah that will make him happy. So whats up Erza?" He asked letting himself lay down and stretch out the kinks in his back, opening his mouth wide so Kura could return home, the large snake wasted no time and entered the body vanishing again.

Erza sat down next to Naruto holding her legs, "Where were you?" The pain in her voice was clear, even though she was trying to hide it, "Rob passed away."

"I know, I was there. I would have seen you but the Rune Knights needed me, I am sorry Erza," Naruto spoke, sitting up again and crossing his legs, placing his elbows onto his knees, "Are you o-"

He didn't get the chance to finish at the armour clad girl barreled into him striking against his chest, "Baka, I didn't think you would come back, you were gone for so long this time. I felt so alone, please don't leave again," Her hands gripped tightly onto the cloth around his waist, looking up at his snake-like blue eyes.

"I wish I could Erza, this guild is heaps of fun, but I am helping Mysto with some things he needs to get done, plus the Magic Council has asked for the hand from a couple of high ranking mages, something pretty big is going down," He murmured bringing his arms around the redhead and holding her gently.

"Things will clear up pretty soon ok?"

"You promise?" Her brown eyes seemed to plead as she asked the question.

"Of course I do, and you know I won't go back on my word," He brought his hand up and ruffled her hair jokingly causing to to shift back and give him a small glare.

"Don't touch my hair," The two gave small glares at one another for a few moments before they started to laugh.

Naruto took a deep breath and let got all of the silliness out of his body, "How is your training going? You're getting pretty strong by now I bet."

"Yeah, I am trying to master Requip magic, meaning I can change weapons and armour in an instant, I have gotten pretty good if I do say so myself," Her hands were on her hips with her chin tilted up into the air.

Naruto looked at her for a few seconds with a big grin on his face, the tower had scarred both of them, but he would always remember her smile, "We might have to have a spar at some point," He pointed at her and poked his tongue out.

"Sounds good, I can't wait to show you how strong I have gotten!" The redhead cheered smiling widely.

"Snake, I just received a message from the council, its time," Stated Jellal moving towards the duo, his words caused Erza to frown.

"You're leaving already?" She hung her head a little, having expected the dual to stay around a little longer, it seemed like they had only really gotten here and yet they were just going to turn and leave again.

Naruto rubbed the back of his head, slowly standing and lifting Erza up with him, "It seems that way, don't worry we will be back soon ok Erza?"

"Come back safe?" She questioned looking up to him with big brown eyes.

Mystogan came forward and placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder, "Don't worry, this idiot is hard to hurt, but I'll watch his back anyway ok?"

"Ok Mystogan, I will see you both when you get back," Trying her best to smile as Naruto jumped into the air and spread his wings, she let out a small gasp not knowing the blonde could fly.

Mystogan just shook his head and lifted his hands out to the side, "It is the fastest way to travel, but he is always such a show off about it," He muttered as Naruto came down and picked the boy up.

"See you soon Erza, keep the guild in line for me yeah?"

"Will do Naruto!" She shouted as the duo got further and further away.

The shrubs behind Erza started to rustle as Cana stepped out, a large smirk on her face, "So when are you going to tell him?"

"T-tell who what?" Erza stuttered out with a red hue spreading over her face.

The brunette moved forward shaking her head and patting the Requip mage on her own, "That you are majorly crushing on him silly."

"A-am not, we are just friends is all, now if you will excuse me I have a Natsu to beat up," Erza gave a small huff and stormed off not even bothering to look back at the laughing Cana.

* * *

Naruto and Jellal were leaning against a wall when Jura walked in, his hands inside of his robes like normal, there was a strange man in a suit, like really strange, like sniffs people when they walk into a room strange. He was sporting a nice lump on the side of his head right now, courtersy of Naruto freaking out over being sniffed. "Snake-dono its nice to see you again," The large bald mand spoke walking up to the two Fairy Tail mages.

"Jura, please just call me Naruto, everyone else is starting to get into the habit of it, so you should too," Naruto stated waving his hand about in the air, the doors were kicked open and a muscly man with purple armor over his shoulders walked in, a bottle of what seemed to be alchol in his hands.

"Bacchus-dono are you feeling well today?" Jura questioned the man as he looked around the room through squinted eyes.

"Where am I? Who is talking? What time is it?"

"Naruto, I think that man is drunk, hey Naruto are you listenin-" Jellal started but just gave a sigh when he saw his blonde haired partner standing next to the swaying man.

Naruto extended a hand in a gesture to introduce himself, Bacchus on the otherhand uncorcked his bottle and held it out to Naruto raising his brow, Naruto shrugged his shoulders and took a swig, his eyes going wide and blinking rapidly, "Wow that was pretty strong, names Naruto, whats yours?"

"Hehe, names Bacchus, I like you kid, now where are we? My guildmaster kind of just dropped me off here," The man spoke reaching his hand up and scratching the back of his head.

Naruto looked around for a few moments seeing Jellal just shake his head at their antics, "Well we are in the Magic Councils meeting place, we are meeting with a rep from the council before we head off to jump into a civil war or something like that,"

The doors open revealing a girl around the age of fifteen, the same as Naruto, holding a small folder in her hands, "Thats correct, you five will be heading over to Rubengard, the government there has become corrupt and does not look like it will change anytime soon. Despite our constant questioning such, thus you will be acting on behalf of the council for this mission, also I am sorry that this does not apply to you Mystogan, but this is also a test to see if you have what it takes to fill in some of the places in the Wizard Saints, now if you will come with me, oh my name is Ultear don't worry about introducing yourselves, I already know all of you," The raven-haired girl spoke before turning around and giving a small wave of her hand for them all to follow.

"You know Naruto, I get the sinking feeling you signed me up for something that may infact get us killed," Jellal muttered as he walked next to the smiling blonde.

"You worry to much Mysto, we got this looks at all these strong people with us," Naruto waved his hand around at the other mages.

Jellal shook his head at the blonde, "You have only just met two of them, and one you nearly knocked out, how can you be so sure they are strong?"

"Cause each of them was asked here like me, that means they got to be pretty strong to get the attention of the council, that should be enough yeah Mysto?" Naruto spoke putting his hands behind his head, lifting his legs up high as he walked, his body slowly bending further and futher back until he was walking while his back was on the horizontal.

Ultear looked aorund with wide eyes, "Your pretty flexible aren't you Naruto?" She mused.

"Yeah I ate a monkey," Whatever answer she had expected that was not it, her jaw hung low trying to form some kind of words to leave her mouth.

After a few moments she was able to shake it all off and just barely make out a sentence, "It doesn't work like that baka,"

"Ulter-san you must understand, for Naruto it does in fact work like that," Jellal breathed out, sometimes his partner just dug these holes himself.

Naruto pulled back his hood, showing off his fangs and eyes, "My body kind of adapts when I eat things, making me stronger, its pretty cool but I get some wicked stomach pains from some of them, like the Wyvern, that was just nasty," Giving a sly grin to Ulter as he liked his lips, "I wonder how you would taste."

"So forward ~men~"

"Naruto-dono thats a little much!"

"WILD!"

"Idiot."

Ulter had a heavy blush on her face while Naruto looked confused at the group around him, "No I mean her magic smells really strong, why does everything have to be taken out of context."

"So you wren't hitting on me?" The raven-haired woman questioned, more than a little confused now.

"Nah, thats not my scene, I'm too young for all of that shit," Naruto said drawing his hood back up and crossing his arms over his chest.

* * *

The group had made it to the small town with little difficulting, they only had to drag Bacchus out of one bar, surprsingly Naruto had tagged along with him, both had a train trip to drink off the booze, Ultear was actually finding herself nearing breaking point with the blonde, everything in his movements seemed to just scream to be a massive flirt, but maybe she was just thinking too much into his words.

Currently the two men in purple had their arms around each others shoulders and were walking down the path with large smiles on their faces, she had in fact forgotten to take Bacchus' bottle from him. "You two do understand that you are on an important mission right?"

The blonde of the group turned and raised his brow at her, "Yeah, but if we go in flat stick from the start, things are going to get really boring, this way if we get to the fight and still have some booze in our system, things will be more interesting," Naruto told her giving a small shrug at the situation.

"YOU ARE THE BIGGEST IDIOT I HAVE EVER SEEN!" She yelled completly fed up with his behaviour.

"You have a list?"

"God no just, can we just get on with this please?" She pleaded with the blonde, she looked across to his partner who was just shaking his head, "How do you deal with him?" She questioned seeming him give a small chuckle.

"Oi Snake, its time to switch on okay?"

"Sorry Bacchus, got to go!" Naruto cheered jumping back into line next to Mystogan with a smile on his face.

Ulter turned and gave Jellal the dirtiest glare she could muster, "You could have done that the entire time?!" She seethed, watching as he just shrugged his shoulders, "You boys are impossible, I swear I am going to have grey hairs by the end of this."

She looked at Naruto and was actually surprised that he didn't say anything about how it might suit her, his eyes seemed to be focused and his body was rippling under the skin, "Uhh, is he going to be ok?"

Mystogan looked at her for a few moments before looking to Naruto, "He is fine, probably just smelled something interesting or something, don't worry, he will perform when you need him too," He looked at her for a few moments before sighing, "Curse you Naruto..."

The blonde for his part did not seem to notice his partners words, then like a puzzle falling into place his skin stopped crawling and he stretched his mouth wide summoning Kura, "Kura please keep Ultear safe, we are being eveluated here not her, Ultear please jump on the large snakes back and watch from the sky," Naruto spoke giving a small grin from under his hood.

Naruto walked to the front of the group, looking at the warriors that were charging down the street, weapons raised to strike, "If I was to say that I wanted to attack your government what would you do?"

They continued to run and Bacchus came up and stood next to Naruto, his jug down on the ground behind them. "I've got this, **Whisper of the Fallen,"** The name of the spell was completly missleading, out of Naruto's mouth came a large scream that seemed to tear through everything in its path, it looked like a purple hurricane, only made out of what appeared to be screams, stripping planks from houses and skin from flesh.

Looking at the destruction he caused Naruto wiped at the side of his mouth, "Shall we continue on then?" The joyful tone in his voice completely misleading what had just happened. Jellal saw the small frown on Ultears face and let out a sigh, "They are alive, they just won't be moving for a few a while, that spells uses the vibrations of what seem to be a mixture of screams to tear at skin and bone, leaving those caught completely helpless for the caster to pick them off as he wishes," Jellal informed her causing the girl to let out a relieved sigh.

"He also has a tendency to not exactly tell friend from foe when the fighting really gets going, sometimes calling out Snake helps though, but if you are with Kura you are normally pretty safe," Jellal added as small piece of advice as he jumped onto the back of Kura and sat down, there was no need for him to be going flat out right away after all.

Ultear watched the event with wide eyes, "He is like some kind of monster," She muttered to herself, this was someone Master Hades could really use, she watched as a group of what looked to be Samurai closed around him, only for the boy to bend back at a ridiculous angle and whip his arms around, cutting open armour and if she guessed correctly by how quickly they fell, poisoning them.

"I heard from the other Council Members he was strong, but I didn't think someone my age could be like this..."

"You didn't read up on how he was promoted did you?" Jellal asked tilting his head to the side in confusion.

Ultear narrowed her eyes on the man, "I joined after the event, still being rather new the Information is classified," She gave a small sigh watching the blonde clothesline two people then flip onto a roof, kicking an archer down like some little monkey, "You wouldn't want to fill me in would you?"

"Nope, if the magic council says its classified, then its classified, I am not getting into trouble over something like that, no offense," Stated the mage plainly.

Ultear let her shoulders drop a little and gave another sigh, "Well it was worth a shot, apparently only he can speak of it freely, but he seems like the kind to keep a lot of secrets," She mused trailing a finger along her lips.

"Mysto, they ran out of people! Can we go get lunch?" The blonde questioned looking around at the bodies that filled the street, the rebel base was not too far away from where they were currently.

Ultear waved him over and was quite surprised when large wings came out of his back and he came up to hover next to them, "W-we're almost at the rendezvous point, I am sure there will be something for you to eat there Naruto...-kun," She added as an after thought tilting her head to the side and making a cute face.

"Oh you can relax now Naruto, I think you knocked them all out,"

"Hey I helped!" Roared Bacchus as he picked up his jug and took a swig, offering it out to Naruto again who gladly took it now.

The pair threw their arms around each others shoulder with large grins on their faces, "What were we talking about again?"

"You just finished talking about your promotion before you went and got all wild!" Roared Bacchus causing the observer to face flaunt and Jellal to laugh at her expense.

Waving his finger back and forth from his seat on Kura he snickered, "If you didn't focus so much on trying to drown out his voice you may of heard what you wanted to," He had a huge smile plastered over his face. "Oh Guys, the council said that Snake's promotion is classified, that means we can't talk about it to anyone who doesn't know, for example our lovely observer," He called out to the others watching the glare that Ultear gave the group.

"I hate you all!"

* * *

The week passed quickly and the group was standing in one of the room of the Magic Council Headquarters. Naruto and Bacchus grinning wildly while each had a jug of alcohol in their hands, knocking them against one another every couple of minutes, Ultear was blushing profusely off to the side, "Don't look so glum honey, you were the one that made the bet," Bacchus chimed causing Naruto to laugh and roll around on the floor.

"Can any of you blame me?! I didn't think the idiot would actually do it!" She roared slamming her hands under her chest.

Jellal shifted against the wall, "I told you not to do it, I'm not his partner for no reason,"

Naruto lifted his jug into the air and gave a throaty laugh, "You thought I wouldn't eat something, silly lady,"

"~Men~"

"Naruto-dono does have questionable taste, it was a bad bet to make Ultear-sama," Jura stated a small blush on his face.

"Betting your knickers was pretty wild girly!" Bacchus got out before he started rolling on the ground laughing alongside Naruto.

Ultear's blushed intensified, she looked at Naruto glaring intently at him as he flicked the garments between himself and Bacchus, it would be that moment that one of the senior members walked in, "Yajima how are you?" Giggled the blonde right before Bacchus let loose what was in his hands slapping the man in the side of the face.

He looked around the room for a moment, eventually landing his eyes on the two on the ground, "Jura, Naruto and Bacchus, the three of you have been accepted, if you choose to take this privilege it will bring recognition and respect to your guilds, the only real questions I have are, do you accept and Ultear are these yours?" He asked lifting said garments from the floor, they even had a cute little rose pattern on them.

"Technically not anymore Sir," Giving a large sigh as the words left her mouth, Yajima rose a brow for a moment but shrugged it was really not worth it.

"I would be more than happy to accept such a prestigious position Yajima-sama. The master should be quite pleased," Spoke the bald man, bowing his head.

Bacchus lifted up his jug and emptied it into his mouth letting a large burp out, "It sounds pretty wild, why not?"

Naruto raised his hand and cleared his throat," Those would belong to me now Yajima, plus I think Makarov would be pretty pissed if I didn't take it, not to mention Erza, god that would be scary," Mused Naruto out loud.

"Cheating on me already Naruto-kun?" She tried to ask in a sultry voice, hoping to fluster the blonde in some way so it wasn't just her in such a position.

Naruto rose a brow as Yajima handed them back to him, along with badge, same with Bacchus and Jura, "Just cause you gave me your panties don't mean we are a thing, Yajima, this lady is super strange,"

"An inspiration to men everywhere ~men~" Commented Ichiya, he didn't really talk much about the mission, it was for fair reasons too, it's not everyday you get captured by a group of children and tied to a chair.

Bacchus gave a toothy grin and looked between Naruto and Ultear, "Blondie is wild!"

"Ok, it sounds like you all had fun, from now on, Bacchus is the 10th saint, Jura 9th and Naruto 8th, I do look forward to seeing these numbers change as your skills improve, also don't worry Bacchus, every generation has to have someone start at 10," The elderly man spoke before he turned and walked out of the room, Ichiya leaving first, shouting something about 'parfum' and 'men'.

Jura patted Naruto on the back and both congratulated one another, the older man leaving shortly after while Naruto and Bacchus headbutted one another a few times before laughing and going their separate ways, "Naruto don't forget the next train comes in an hour," Jellal stated before turning and walking away, leaving Ultear and Naruto alone in the room.

Naruto seemed to sober up in a single breath, "You can have them back if you want, I may have taken it a bit to far," He said holding them up for her to take.

Ultear pushed him against the wall his hood falling down from the movement, showing his ice blue snake eyes, her own black orbs looking into his like pointed daggers, "You are crude, disrespectful, stupid, strong, kind and fun man!" She roared at him crashing her lips against his and pushing him back harder against the wall causing his eyes to go wide, her body pushing up against his as she forcefully parted his lips, pushing her tongue into his mouth stifling a small moan when he started to fight back, showing he was not just going to sit back and let this happen without doing anything in return.

Naruto remembering how to control his body raised his hands to her shoulders and gently pushed her from him, narrowing his eyes at her, "W-what the hell. I thought you hated me?" He questioned, slightly out of breath.

The council member took a deep breath before nodding, "I hate everything about you, but I can't help but feel strange when I look at you, w-was I ok?" She questioned nervously causing the blonde to blink rapidly, slowly nodding his head, "Y-yeah you were fine, I just ain't looking for something like this, sorry I guess," He raised her panties into the air and gave a small chuckle, "You can still take them back if you want?"

She gave a small laugh back to him before shaking her head, "Nah keep 'em, I heard you like to keep trophies from your missions after all," She let out another small giggle looking at the blush that ran across his face, "Plus, I think that had got to be one of the strangest one yet huh?"

"Yeah it's up there, I will see you around I guess?"

"Sounds good Naruto-kun," She replied watching him walk through the doors, her happy smile quickly turning into a frown, _'I will have you Naruto, mark my words.'_

* * *

Naruto gave a small groan as he sat down on the chair of the train, it had been one crazy strange week, Ichiya got kidnapped, or was it adult napped? It really didn't matter, then Mystogan and Ultear went to go get him back, only for them to get captured as well, in the end Naruto and Bacchus stumbled into the right place at the right time as some would say, both rather intoxicated and started punching left and right, untying the group and laughing sheepishly at trying to explain how they managed to find booze during a civil war. It honestly wasn't that hard.

"So was the mission what you expected Naruto?"

The blonde raised his head to look at his friend, not paying too much attention to the fact that his hood was all messed up and there seemed to red lipstick smudged around his lips, Mystogan found the site quite amusing. "The mission was strange, plus I think Ultear has the hots for me, you wouldn't believe it right?"

Jellal had to look at the smudge around his partner's lips for a moment before laughing, "Not at all Naruto, not at all."

"Crap there is something on my face isn't there?!"

* * *

Naruto and Mystogan were walking down the streets of Magnolia when the blondes attention was drawn to a shop window, Jellal looked at what had caught his attention, a new outfit, a high collared fur lined jacket, a deep onyx colour, of course it had a hood, it was like everything Naruto wore needed to have a hood, the sign said it came in all sizes causing his eyes to widen, not to mention the black combat boots and the pants with leg buckles for reinforcing his knees and a black skin tight long sleeved, he looked back at Jellal who just gave a sigh and nodded, he knew Naruto could be childish at times,, his clothing was one of them.

A few minutes later the blonde walked out with the new outfit, a proud look on his face, his hood currently drawn back and his new badge present on the collar. His hands were inside the jackets pockets, apparently he had used some strange kind of magic to shrink all the items down, making them easier to carry, "So how do I look?"

"Amazing as always Naruto," Drawled Jellal, the two now setting their sights on the guildhall, Mystogan had promised not to put everyone to sleep, just this once. The duo snuck into the guild watching the master read over a message, from the council.

"Oi which one of you brats got a badge!" He roared looking around the hall at the stupefied faces of the guild members, each slowly turning to him and laughing, "What are you brats laughing at?"

"I think they are laughing at you Jiji," Spoke Naruto in a voice that felt like velvet.

Makarov in return jumped up from his spot and spun around his eyes wide taking in naruto's new appearance, his eyes slowly drifting to the badge on his collar, "Great they gave it to _the_ brat,"

"Hey I _almost_ take offense to that Jiji, we come back to see how you are all doing and you start calling me a brat right off the bat," Naruto gave a small chuckle and patted the old man on the head.

Makarov swatted at the hand causing a few in the guild to laugh, "So what rank did you get?"

Naruto beamed and looked out to everyone, "As of a few hours ago I became the 8th Wizard Saint, we ran into some old friends, met some creepy people, some of us got kidnapped and yeah, was pretty eventful," Holding up the corner of jacket showing off his badge, a sudden look of realisation came over his face as he started to fiddle around in his pockets, pulling out what looked to be a very shinny toothpick. Spinning it around in his fingers he moved over to Erza placing it on the table, bringing his hands up in front of himself and channeling magic into the item, brining it back to its full size.

The redhead gasped at the large silver and black greatsword, "I beat its owner, as we were taking him away to the authorities he said I could keep it. I don't really use swords, so its yours, I want to see you kick some serious ass with that ok?" Naruto said playfully getting her to nod quickly, her small hands wrapping around the hilt and trying to move it from the table.

"God its heavy, how the hell do you lift this thing?" Questioned Erza, looking over at Naruto to see him give a small shrug, sighing she used her magic to store it away in her alter dimension, there was no way she would be able to carry it back to her apartment, "Thanks but why me?"

It was actually a pretty good question, he looked at her for a few moments, letting a smile slowly spread across his face before placing his hand on top of her head, ruffling her hair a little much to her protest, "We're friends, friends give one another presents right?" He rolled his shoulders forward slightly feeling just how stiff they were, "Master do we have a masseuse?"

"N-no Naruto, we do not have a masseuse," Makarov groaned out, shaking his head at the blonde.

Naruto let out a small sigh as his form seemed to deflate, "Damn, we really should look at getting one, anyway I need to sleep night all!" He put his hand up into the air and left shocking those around him at how quickly his mood could change. Jellal looked at his partner leaving and gave a small chuckle.

"Idiot forgot that I have the keys," the blue-haired mage spoke holding up a ring full of them, giving a small jingle for added effect. He felt the masters eyes lock onto his body and turned to face him.

"What was it really like?"

Giving a large sigh Jellal slumped down into a nearby stool, "Naruto was drunk through the entire thing, fires burning everywhere, mages flicking their magic at us left and right along with some rather skilled foot soldiers. It was an absolute disaster, but still three of the five made it into the Wizard Saints, Bacchus from Quatro Cerberus and Jura from Lamia Scale coming in 10th and 9th respectively. I would relate the place to hell if I could, but those three didn't falter even for a moment, it was like they were born to work in the environment, hell Naruto was thriving there able to finally let loose," Jellal suppressed a small shiver at the memory.

"What do you mean, also what is with this whole Wizard Saint thing, I don't think I have heard of it before?" Questioned Erza speaking for the younger generation, it actually made sense why their wasn't such a ruckus now, they didn't know what the hell was going on.

Makarov gave a small sigh, flicking the badge on his coat, "This badge kids represents someone as a Wizard Saint, there are only ever 10 at a time, currently I am number 5 although that is subject to change with the younger generation now joining the ranks, these 10 wizards have been recognised as some of the strongest mages in the land, to even be number 10 is a great achievement, it is said that a battle between two mages at this level could very well destroy any surrounding land,"Makarov decided it was best just to give them the quick description, no need to get _too_ lengthy with them.

"But what about Gildarts?" Natsu asked while some of the others agreed with him.

Makarov gave a small shake of his head, "Gildarts turned down the position, he wasn't part of a guild at the time meaning he would have had to join the council, could you imagine Gildarts making choices that would change the world?" All of the members in front of him suppressed a shiver that ran down their backs.

Erza tilted her head up in confusion, looking at the master for a few moments, "So what does this mean for Naruto?" It was a question she really wanted the answer for.

"Don't worry Erza your little crush will still be around the guild, he will just get called out for special events and meetings with the other Saints, not to mention personal requests will come in more often now for the blonde brat. But all in all apart from him getting really famous, nothing really changes," Makarov smiled at seeing the redhead's cheeks match her hair.

"W-we're just friends," The Requip mage stuttered out.

Jellal gave a small chuckle, "Yeah and Naruto totally didn't get hit on during the mission,"

"WHAT!"

* * *

Naruto awoke early, even after getting to bed late last night. He remembered the sheepishly look Jellal had once he took the mask off inside, he had stood outside in the rain for hours waiting for the teme to show. Finishing his shower he glared at the mirror, large bags were under his eyes, closing them he took a few deep breaths, slowly opening them and watching them fade away. He really loved his body at times.

One of his new outfits was drenched, quickly changing into a dry pair he let out a small groan, he felt exhausted, stupid Jellal. Grabbing his wallet he stuffed it into the pocket on his right thigh, tightening the strap around it, with a sigh he left the house, remembering to grab the spare key this time and lock it up behind him.

Jellal had called him a fool for buying the place, but now that he looked back at it, they always had a place to stay in Magnolia now, it wasn't _too _expensive either, only a couple thousand million, he had to get a loan from the bank, but he was always way ahead with his payments.

He walked down the long path down to the centre of town, he had plenty of time to finish waking up.

Finding the shop he wanted he gave a small smile, walking in and getting the attention of the person behind the counter, something had already caught his eye, handing the needed payment over and taking his purchase from the hands of the storekeeper, he bid a quick 'thanks' and left the shop, moving over to a new one following the same procedure.

With a small smile on his face he headed to the guild carrying two packages, he was the third to arrive, Cana, already out and playing with her cards while Makarov sat on the bench, it was the same as every year, Naruto walked up and placed the packages down next to the master, both sharing a small nod as the blonde turned to leave, "She would be happier if you stayed around for when she unwrapped those," The brunette spoke up freezing Naruto in place.

"It would be best if I'm not around, its kind of strange to continue sending gifts like this every year, but she has her eyes on someone else, see you around Cana," The blonde spoke giving a small wave as he left.

Cana watched him leave, the doors closing behind him quietly, "What makes him think that I won't tell her?" She questioned more to herself than anyone else.

"Cana please remember to respect your nakamas wishes," The master spoke sternly, letting her know this was the end of discussion.

Even going as far as to watch Cana intently as Erza came in being called over by the master, sitting down at slowly unwrapping them, silver kunai like earrings, and strawberry cheesecake. Her face lighting up at both of them.

Cana looked over to the guildmaster and saw the cold look in his eyes piercing right through any resolve she had managed to muster.

* * *

Cana was sitting outside of Fairy Hills, she lived here along with Erza, knowing for a fact that she would still be out training at this point. The soft sounds of footsteps reached the brunettes ears, looking up she saw a sweaty Erza walking towards her, the earrings in place and a smile on her face. "Cana-san, I thought you would have gone to bed by now..."

"I was actually waiting for you Erza," She took a deep breath, thinking back over what both the blonde and Master had said to her, but seeing the joy on her friends face, she knew Erza deserved the truth.

Erza nodded for Cana to continue, "I am probably going to get into a lot of trouble but, I know who drops those presents off every ye-"

She was forced to stop when Erza grabbed onto her tightly shaking her back and forth, "Tell~ me Cana, please," Erza begged as the brunette started to turn green.

"I-I c-can't i-f y-you kee-eep shaking meeeee," She managed to get out feeling incredibly unwell right now, thankfully her words caused Erza to stop.

Now settling for a pleading look the redhead looked intently at the card user, "Its N-naruto, he thought it would be better if you didn't know..." Cana trailed off, looking behind Erza she saw the guildmaster and paled, only for him to give a small thumbs up and turn back down the path.

"That baka, why didn't he just let me know it was him giving me birthday gifts," Erza muttered with a smile on her face, turning on her feet before Cana put a hand on her shoulder.

"Wait, its your birthday?" Her question got a small nod from the redhead and a confused look, "Why didn't you tell anyone? How old are you turning?"

"I turned 14 this morning, also I don't really talk about it that much because I don't like people fussing over me, while it does feel good I can't really think of just having a full day of it," The redhead let her head fall a little in embarrassment.

Cana just looked at her for a few more moments, "Well tonight we are having ice cream and treats and stuff, you don't have a say in it birthday girl,"

"But Cana~" Whined the requip mage, who really just wanted to go to bed.

* * *

Mystic Snake was currently standing at the train station, each holding a ticket in their hands, "Are you sure Snake, I can probably handle this by myself,"

The blonde gave a small shake of his head, "Its better this way, I don't want to ruin our friendship over something like this, plus we still have a lot of work to do partner," Naruto spoke stepping onto the train and having his ticket punched by the inspector, Jellal following shortly after. Watching his blonde partner, Naruto always tried to make sure everyone around him was happy or having fun, never really paying much attention to himself or what he wanted.

Shaking his head lightly Jellal knew what he had to do, him and Naruto would just punch through all of the pillars to edolas, maybe then the blonde would settle down and start living for himself.

He entered the carriage not long after Naruto but to his surprise a large stave was standing upright in the middle of it, he knew Naruto had to have put it there, the two of them were the only ones in there after all, "Whats this Snake?"

"Congrats on making S-Class, its a little late I know but I found it in a store the other day and thought it would suit your combat style," The blonde informed his partner with a smile.

Jellal walked forward slowly and wrapped his hand around it feeling the magical energy that it contained, "Wow, this is unreal," Jellal looked up to Naruto and saw the smile on his face.

"Glad you like it buddy, now if you will excuse me, I didn't get much sleep last night."

"Ahh sorry?"

* * *

**PA: Hope you enjoyed the chapter, I would have updated one of my other stories but this one has just been stuck in my head since I posted it, as always R&R please.**


	3. Chapter 3

**PA: Wow this is getting a nice amount of reviews already, I don't really want to rush the relationship between Erza and Naruto, so it will still be a few chapters before anything like that happens between the two. Also I don't want to to fall into the classic, timeskip to when Lucy joins, so we still have a few more chapters before that, which hopefully you will all enjoy.**

**lifewilbelife42: I was thinking about changing the pairing for a little bit, but then I just had a random brainstorm of an idea for an Naruto/Ultear FF for a little later down the track.**

**Kami no Sennin: I love Bacchus, personally I think the dude is freaking awesome and needs more screen time, but eh what can we do? But yeah there are going to be a lot of misadventures with that duo, it is really difficult to make a character that isn't incredibly strong, I am trying to play around with some of the events from the story to balance out his abilities so Naruto does not become overpowered.**

**ultima-owner: That is the jiest of it yeah, the jellyfish definitely gave him something else other than those eyes.**

**AnAddictedReader: Is that a good thing or?**

**mellra: The ability to shed his skin, he has it but it uses up a lot of magic, its not going to become a spammable ability. The Tower of Heaven arc is going to be huge, so I have to keep that in there. Erza is stilling going to be pretty tempered at times, but it is going to be for other reasons.**

**NeroYagyuu: Kuraja is something I was not part of the plan when I first came up with this story, but he kind of seemed to fit and would make for some interesting encounters. The whole thing with Erza is that Naruto thinks she likes Jellal (Earthland) so he didn't want to feel like he was getting in the way of anything. Yeah I wanted him to have this unique ability and this seemed to work really well, plus it almost forces you to add scenes with him battling all kinds of strange monsters, don't worry those scenes are coming.**

**The thought of him chomping down on a Hydra had not crossed my mind, it has a few places where it could fit in actually. There will definitely be him attempting to eat a dragon at one point or another, which dragon I am not sure of yet.**

**The flirting thing is something that kind of fits his personality, at least that is how I feel, normally he is this aloof sort of person who can make no sense whatsoever, that's what is going to get him into trouble a bit, then there is this dark side that gets a bit of light shone on it this chapter.**

**Disclaimer: I own neither Fairy Tail nor Naruto.**

* * *

November 20 X779

"Naruto Uzumaki are you paying attention?!" Roared a council member, slamming his fists against a table in outrage.

Mystogan looked down at the blonde haired Fallen magic user, his feet were up on a table, his head back, small snores escaping his mouth, currently he was on trial. It would appear that the magic council was incredibly touchy about blowing up a town.

A long drawn out sigh filled the room, "Org we both know he did the right thing, this trial is just a farce. Plus it was confirmed that their was a Dark Guild in the town, its members have been taken away and are now held in our cells. I think that mages like Naruto keep things interesting around here..." Trailed off Ultear, waving a hand dismissively in front of her face, honestly Naruto did them all a favour, taking on the request of the council and finishing it promptly, he just went a little overboard.

"Would you be saying such words if it was Not Naruto on trial Ultear?" Shot back Org, slamming his hands on the desk again to try and wake Naruto. Of course the blonde payed no heed, continuing to sleep through the arguing council members.

Michello moved forward, the first thing you would think was that he was an old cat... with a mustache, "If you have already forgotten Org, we were the ones that kindly asked Naruto to investigate the guild, he did, sent back information. We _gave_ him permission to engage against them. We all know of his destructive nature, but he was the best for the job. I too believe this is a waste of everyone's time," the old cat-man spoke, tapping his cane on the ground to signal that he had stopped.

The other mages of the council seemed to follow his statement, all of them thinking it was a waste of time to put the blonde on trial, Mystogan watched as some of them even came close to blows, he noticed that one cute member jump down to Naruto and gently wake him up.

"W-wha- where am I? Ultear?" He questioned through groggy eyes, trying to get a good look of his surroundings.

"Yes its me Naruto-kun, come on let's get you out of this courthouse, we can talk in my office," mused the busty female extending a hand forward for him to take.

"I'm in a courthouse? Where is Mysto? What day is it?" He questioned quickly, the smell of alcohol sticking strongly to his breath, nevertheless he placed his hand in Ultears, letting her help him to his feet and lead him through the halls, 'Jellal' jumping down and following behind them.

Ultear had to give her head a shake , she held his hand rather tightly as they walked, he either didn't notice or just didn't care, "Its thursday... Mystogan is with us and you were just on trial... the charges were dropped though so nothing happened, on behalf of the council we are sorry for wasting your time," Murmured the girl as she opened the door to her office, stepping through, Naruto and Mystogan following behind her.

The three conversed for some time, Naruto oblivious to the flirting attempted on his person, "Wait, so me and Bacchus teamed up for a bit... completed a bunch of requests while sloshed then I end up in a court-house?" Naruto briefly summed up what had happened for the past month causing Mystogan and Ultear to give quick nods, "Maybe I should drink on the job more often..."

"NO!" Heads turned to see Ultear with a look of panic on her face, "You are very destructive when you drink... you're effective in clearing out a problem if we do not care about the cost, but please do try to lower the amount you drink," She pleaded into his blue eyes, seeing a toothy grin spread over his face.

"Soz toots, Bacchus got this really good shipment of stuff that we tried out... b- no wait yes, yes it was Bourbon... man thats good, gives you this really warm feeling inside, I guess I can try to lower it a bit, I mean I can't even remember most of what you guys are saying," Naruto leaned back on her couch finding it really comfortable, his head falling back and his eyes becoming heavy.

Ultear gave a small sigh, "Thats good to hear, how have you be-" She stopped and a tickmark formed on her brow as a loud snore cut her off, jumping across and sitting on his lap she shook him awake, his blue eyes looking around the room before finally coming back to see her glaring down at him.

"Oh hey toots, I was just having a dream about you, I was on trial of something... so uh hows life?" He blurted out sheepishly, slowly taking in the fact she was seated on a rather touch sensitive part of his body.

"Naruto-kun, that wasn't a dream. We are currently in my office, you fell asleep on my couch while I was talking to you..." drawled the time arch mage, "I am fine though, also since when did you start calling me 'toots'?"

Naruto tilted his head to the side, flicking his tongue out into the air, the first thing he noticed was his mouth was really dry, secondly this couch was really comfortable... "Oh, sorry. Everything just seems like a giant blur at the moment, and I don't really know when or why but eh? Also don't you think your position could be seen as a bit forward by your companions?" He questioned rubbing the back of his head and giving a toothy grin.

Ultear let out a small 'epp' and leapt off his lap, instantly wanting to go back when she saw the grin come across his face, "I guess it could have, you feeling better now though?"

Her answer was for him to stand up and stretch, looking down at his clothes, he blinked a few times before grabbing the collar of his new jacket and looking to Mystogan, "Where did my old clothes go?"

"You started a forest fire to smoke out a few rogue mages, you managed to lure them out but when you went in to check if you got them all... you forgot your clothes weren't fireproof. We haven't been home since January so haven't really had a lot of time for you to change, we got through a lot of things we needed to get done though, so I guess we can have a break for a bit, and before you ask, yes you do look amazing in them Naruto," Mystogan drawled out, already expecting the question from the blonde.

Naruto looked over to Ultear who gave a small nod of approval before she held up a mirror for him, he had to admit that he looked pretty badass. he was in black pants, a golden snake curled around his right leg, a black shirt was barely seeable under his long white coat that came to knee height, it had a high collar with his badge attached to it and a hood that was currently drawn back, allowing his blonde hair to hang free, around his waist over the top of the coat was a black and gold snake holding it together, "Well I like it, plus it doesn't seem to restrict any movement. I guess we should look at getting back on the road again hey Mysto?"

"More than likely, it has been some time since we last sent a report back too, I wonder if the master things we're dead?"

"Doubtful, I haven't heard him yelling yet, well it was good seeing you again toots, I shall see you the next time the council needs something of me I guess?" He questioned putting his hand forward only for her to walk past it and bring him in for a hug.

"Yep, don't be a stranger though, feel free to drop by whenever, its always nice to just have a talk," Her breath felt rather warm against his chest, he put his arms around her and gave a small chuckle.

"Yeah but some of the other members think I am just a troublemaker, they aren't too fond of me," He replied as they parted, over the past few months Ultear had been giving them missions every now and again, keeping the duo on their feet as they were running around hunting the pillars.

After a quick shake of her head she gave him a bright smile, "Its just that they aren't used to how you get your results yet, once they get used to it they will enjoy your presence more. But hurry along, I wouldn't want to keep you too long," She waved them out giving them both a large grin, it dropped as soon as they left and she started cursing the blue-haired mage, for ruining what could have been her alone time with Naruto.

* * *

November 22

"So you can make them to this size and larger right?" Naruto was currently inside of a clothing store in Magnolia, he was on his way to the guild but he saw this store it had some fancy armour and things inside of it grabbing his attention, apparently they also were able to make custom clothing, that was why he was currently being sized up by a tailor.

The older man with greased back hair, currently in a waiter outfit moved back behind his counter and made a few notes in his book, "Oh it should not be a problem Mr. Uzumaki, if any do arise we shall contact you as soon as possible plus a refund for your down payment. We like to make sure our customers can have confidence at the Crux Heart, male branch of the Heart Kreuz," The older man informed.

"Thank you very much, I look forward to seeing how it comes out," Replied the blonde, giving the server a smile and walking out of the store, having already exchanged details with the man, Mystogan was waiting outside for him, he had to admit his partner was rather patient at times, possibly one of the only people that could put up with his attitude.

"They able to make copies?"

"They reckon they can add some more resilience to it, plus give me cool little knife holders in the sleeves," Naruto pumped his fist into the air with a small cheer.

Jellal looked at him for a few moments waiting for him to calm down, once that term was met he gave a small sigh, "You don't use knives though?"

"Not yet Mysto, I will learn though, just like I learnt how to swim," Naruto stated with confidence causing his partner to stop dead in his tracks.

Mystogan thought the blonde had finally snapped, "You can't be serious... fish can't use swords Naruto?"

"No but Lizardmen can, I heard they have tough scales, plus they _are_ seen as beasts by the council so I can't get into trouble for eating them... I have already thought this through Mysto its all sweet."

Shaking his head the stave user moved forward towards the guild, following the blonde idiot of a partner he had, "You said that about the mermaid job, do you remember how well that went?"

Taking a thinking pose as he moved Naruto tilted his head to the side, "Didn't you almost end up married?"

"YES! Thats because you thought it would be 'all sweet',"

"Well you should've followed my other piece of advice, if it smells fishy, don't touch..."

"You got that from Bacchus."

"He is a lot smarter than people give him credit for, like how he taught that monkey how to drink in like five minutes, that was pretty cool, but it was a nasty drunk. It was still pretty cool though,"

"Ok how about that time with that magma monster?"

"Yeah what was wrong with that?"

"I don't know, how about nearly putting yourself out of commission for a month because 'it's all sweet, my stomach can handle it' I believe is what you said,"

"Yeah that was my bad... I didn't think that one through properly, should have definitely brought some milk or something to help cool it down," Naruto froze when he noticed they had made it to the guild and everyone was staring at the duo, "Oi Mysto... I don't think they like your outfit."

"It's the same one I always wear, I think you just shocked them about how you decide to eat things, don't even start about your magic again, you have spoken about it enough that I think I sleep talk about it," Complained the masked mage, "I will be upstairs if you need me, please try to not need me."

Naruto stuck his tongue out at his partner as he walked off, the master chuckled at the scene the two had made.

"Heya Jiji, we're back. See I even convinced him not to use the sleep spell this time," The bright smile on Naruto's face was contagious, slowly it spread around the guildhall.

Makarov clicked his fingers and held them up in the air, "How long are you two staying this time?"

"I don't know, I guess we can stay for a while... why?"

"S-class exams are coming up, Gildarts is out of town on a mission, I don't want to join in the fighting this year and with the amount of people I have lined up, I will need more than just Laxus. So reckon you two can stay around for awhile and give this old man a hand?" Puppydog eyes... it did not look right one such a small old man, Naruto had to be a little impressed, he even got a small strain of snot to come out of his nose in an instant, he must of worked hard on the technique.

Tilting his head to the side he shrugged his shoulders, "Yeah, we will probs be around until February, just taking some small time requests and things to keep us on our feet. We worked for the council for some time, got loaded from those missions. Apparently got arrested as well, but I don't remember that, so it didn't happen," Logic, Naruto had a flawless grasp on the subject, one that left Makarov speechless and in awe.

"So anything inter-"

"Naruto fight me!" Roared a charging salmon haired boy, one Naruto had met a few times, Natsu was his name.

"Nope," Just like that Naruto had turned and flicked the boy with the back of his fist, sending him up and out of the guildhall, "Wow he is really light, does he have something that makes his body hollow?"

Makarov looked at the now incredibly thoughtful Naruto, his mind trying to strum together all kinds of possible answers, deciding to save the blonde the hassle he spoke up, "Nothing of the kind, you must have just gotten much stronger than you noticed."

"But Jura, Bacchus and Mystogan don't go flying like that, oh... they are using magic to make their body denser, resulting in taking less damage from my hits... everything makes so much sense now. So anyway, anything interesting happen while we were gone?"

Blinking, that was all the master could do right now, the blonde seemed slightly insane the last time they spoke but now it was ridiculous, "N-no not really, Erza-chan had started to have a rivalry with Mira-chan, I am not quite sure what it is over, but both are improving in leaps and bounds because of it, oh also Erza-chan knows that its you..." The small white-haired mage let his eyes flick over to the girl playing with her cards at the table, getting the memo Naruto stood up, dusted off his clothing and went to take a seat next to the card using mage.

"Hello, it was Cana right?" Naruto questioned with a large grin on his face, the girl looked up and saw his slitted blue eyes and froze, "Why do you look so nervous? You haven't been talking about me behind my back have you?"

Cana's eyes drifted over to the master, watching him drink his beer with a large smile on his face, mostly hidden behind the mug currently in front of it. _'The master just killed me!' _She panicked internally, apparently externally as well if the blondes words were anything to go by, she had seen how quickly he had dealt with Natsu, that salmon haired child was tenacious but she still hadn't seen him enter the guild again yet, "Yes, yes I did."

She stiffened, having said what she had been trying so hard not to, his brows seemed to come closer together, his eyes grew much colder, "Why? I asked you not to, should that not be enough of a reason?"

Now she actually started feeling guilty about spilling the secret, her hand playing with her cards to try to ease her nerves, "S-she just seemed s-so happy, I wanted her to know it was you that was making her happy, she smiled at the thought, then called you a baka for not telling her, the two of us have gotten rather close because of the event... you should try sitting down and talking to her more often," The cold blue eyes that were staring over her form did little to ease her nerves.

Looking over to the side he had to suppress a laugh, the entire situation was strange, sure he was used to Mystogan telling him he was an idiot, but he was trained in strategy since he was younger, Naruto's teacher kind of just pointed him at targets and told him to kill, using any means necessary, so far it had worked, what he found more important was the skills he had learnt from his teacher, plus his primal instinct, "Maybe, but I want you to read my future, you can do that right?"

His question through her off guard completely, giving a small stiff nod she shuffled her cards, putting five out onto the table, a grimace passing over her face, five black cards sat between her and Naruto, she was using magic so that she could get some sort of read on what fate had instilled on the blonde, but seeing this was strange, beyond strange even.

"I thought so, see honey, no one can see what my future holds," The reason was simple, the prediction of ones future was limited to humans, being a Slayer made him more than that.

The guild doors swung open, everyone looked towards who would make such a ruckus while Naruto just stared intently at the cards in front of him, "Who knocked out Natsu?" Roared a familiar voice to him, it was followed by the sound of movement from everyone in the guild, all fingers were pointed towards him, "He interrupted my conversation with the master... I think he deserved it."

"N-naruto?"

"Yeah Erza, its me. We are back for a while this time," Informed the blonde as he got out of the chair only to be tackled to the floor, pinned down by Erza sitting on his chest with a large pout.

"You have some explaining to do Naruto, and your are not worming your way out of it, Cana help me bind him."

"Nope Erza I am good with keeping my hands intact. You can tie him up yourself," The brunette stuttered out looking at the cold glare that was thrown her way.

Naruto brought his hand up and poked Erza in the cheek gaining her attention once more, "I assume you have heaps you want to talk about... so lets go someplace quiet ne?" A wide smile on his face, seeing that she was not in the mood to move he picked her up, moving her himself.

"I won't talk so openly in front of others, follow if you wish to hear," His voice cold and calculating, showing his true form to anyone who was still watching, the side that was brought out only when it was needed or called for, his feet hit the ground softly as he left the guildhall, the doors wide open when he leapt up into the air, Erza quickly picked herself up and ran outside, seeing him climb up the roof with such ease put her in a trance.

"Do you need a hand getting up?" His voice called snapping her awake, equipping a black winged armour and jumping into he air, the wings carrying her higher, her landing was a little awkward, the slopped surface seemingly different from what she was used to landing on, her arms started flailing around to keep herself upright, a hand extended and grabbed onto her, keeping her upright.

Erza looked up into the serpentine eyes of the blonde, it seemed like he was always there to stop her from falling, "Thanks, landing on slopes is not as easy as you would think?"

Naruto rose a brow at her, not understanding where she was coming from, "If you say so. Now come, the top of the guild has the best view," His hand moved and wrapped around her lithe waist, his knees bending before launching them both into the air, it had surprised her.

Naruto learned an important lesson that day, Erza was not a giant fan of surprises, the nail marks in his arm could be used as evidence, he gently put her down when they reached the top, the glare he received nearly forced him to laugh.

Seeing the smirk on his face caused her to throw out a soft punch, "Not funny," Her words didn't seem to have much affect as he sat down, looking out at the town below them.

"The town is always one of beauty, but only up here does it truly become beautiful, at such a height were falling could mean death... do you understand what I am saying?" He questioned the redhead, she took a seat next to him. Looking out over the town like he was.

"That the risk of danger makes life more beautiful?"

"Exactly, such a simple concept yet it has always been one that I have given a lot of thought... what does it mean to be beautiful? Does one need to be dangerous to be truly beautiful? Questions that I have still yet to answer," His voice rung through the air, he tilted his head to the side looking watching her take in the city around her, "I will answer almost any question you have."

Erza looked over at him in confusion, "Where have you been?" It was the first question that came to her mind, the one she needed an answer to quickly.

"The Magic Council has been in need of my services lately, they have taken up quite a chunk of our time, plus myself and Mystogan have been making sure our project was a head of schedule so we could take a break," The blondes answer did little to help ease the worry that Erza had hold, it was scary not hearing from him for so long.

"Why did you hide the fact that it was you sending me gifts every year?"

The question had caused him to stiffen, he brought his hand up and brushed some hair out of his face, "I still remember what life was like in the tower, always trying my best to keep everyone happy, even when we got beaten, I would always try to make sure everyone was always ok... the only one it didn't work on was you, I could never get you to smile, no matter how much I tried, it was always Jellal. In the end I became jealous, I decided it would be best if I stayed to the shadows more, letting you and Jellal be together. After all everyone deserves to be happy right?"

"N-naruto?"

"Its cool Erza," Naruto stood up and stretched his bones out, "I guess I will just leave you be for now then..." He gave a wave as he jumped from the roof, vanishing without a trace.

"Baka Naruto, next time don't run away."

* * *

December 13 X779

The guild hall had never looked fuller, everyone seated around at tables holding their eyes trained on the Master, "We gather again once more, it is that time again, time for me to announce those that will be trailed for the S-class exams."

Behind the Master stood Laxus, Naruto and Mystogan. Each keeping a straight face, neither blonde looking at one another while Mystogan acted as a buffer between the two.

"The nominees for this years exam are , Erza Scarlet, Mirajane Strauss, Cana Alberona, Bickslow and Reedus Jonah. Each of you shall chose a partner that can help you through the exams, the only condition is that your partner can not already be an S-class mage. Come to the port in two days with your partner in tow to start. Any questions? No? Good!" The master finished quickly and turned around leaving the guild speechless, Naruto looked at the members before shrugging his shoulders and vanishing again.

"Ever since he ate the chameleon he has been abusing that power... I should make sure he doesn't get arrested before the exams start," Murmured Mystogan as he moved out of the guildhall leaving Laxus and the others.

"Don't even bother, I don't want to talk to any of you!"

* * *

December 15

Two days passed quickly for the guild, the proctors for the exam were already waiting on the island.

Some interesting partnerships had been formed for the challenge, Erza was working alongside Free Justine, a green-haired boy who used rune magic, he thought was that she could use her armours to help boost her stats while freed used runes to cancel anyone from using ranged magic, it was a good strategy to use from both their viewpoints.

Mirajane had partnered up with Elfman, her younger brother. The duo had good teamwork and believed that would be needed to pull out ahead.

Cana Alberona had asked Gray to join her, the ice mage agreed quickly saying it would be a good chance to get some more experience, Gray was good with his fists and his magic meaning he could hold them at bay while Cana set up some elaborate trap with her cards.

Bickslow was bullied by Ever into making her his partner, their teamwork was good but both focused on long ranged fighting.

Reedus had chosen Macao Conbolt for his partner, the mans versatility with his fire magic could help turn the tide of a skirmish.

The first trail was simple enough they were to cross the water quickly and choose which path to take, five lay before them, one team had to pass this stage, three went up against the S-class mages who would see if they had what was needed to join their ranks. Two teams would have to duke it out between themselves to push forward and meet up for the next part of the exam.

"Nee-chan are you sure this was the right path to take?" The voice of Elfman bounced off of the walls.

Mirajane, shook her head quickly, "If anything gets in our way I will just have to use my Satan Soul to push past them, I will not let Erza beat me to S-class,"

A cough drew their attention to the roof above them, Mira slowly looked up and found herself face to face with her worst possible match, "There isn't a chance that I can pick a different path is there?"

"Nope, you are stuck facing against me Mira, I hope you have improved," Naruto taunted, his face inches away from her own, "Also hello Elfman, its good to see you again."

Elfman gave the blonde a curt nod in response, already molding magic into his arm, "So are we just going to stand here staring at one another, or are you going to try and fight me, either way I don't mind, I do enjoy demons squirming under my ga-"

Naruto was cut off, Elfman let out a gasp and Mira pushed out tongue deeper into his mouth, causing him to fall from the roof, landing with a solid thud he slowly shook himself off, his brows raised and looking at the white-haired girl in confusion, "W-what the hell Mira?"

"I stole your first kiss, now I am ahead of Erza!" A triumphant cheer left her mouth as she pumped her fist into the air, "Take that skank, also **Satan Soul**," A large purple seal appeared above her as magic flew into the air, a tail sprouting out of her back, her hair flying up and staying there along with wings sprouting, her look before more demonic to feet the appearance as a change of clothes washed over her.

Naruto rolled his shoulder, looking towards Elfman, "You gonna power up too or?" His words caused the largest Strauss sibling to morph his arm into that of a gorilla, "Ok, lets get this started!"

Naruto cracked his fists together and took a step forward, effortlessly dodging an **Evil Explosion**, a charging Elfman had his hand caught by the blonde, Naruto tilted his head to the side and looked towards Mira, "Your **Evil Explosion** was much slower than normal, I take it that was done so Elfman could move out of the way, I should let you know right now, if you hold back you will fail, if you go all out I still might fail you. Plus Mira if you think that was my first kiss, you are mistaken, I don't know why Erza would care though but eh?"

His grip tightened on Elfman's hand, he looked at the boy for a moment before letting go and pushing him away with a kick, towards his sister, "Wh-what? B-but... you, you were my first, you bastard, I'm not going to hold back anymore, I will just drag you to the next exam," She bit out glaring up at Naruto who was scratching the back of his head.

The demoness shot forward, using her wings to propel her faster, lashing out quickly with a haymaker from each side followed by a round kick to Naruto's stomach, the blonde battered her hands away and checked her kick with his knee causing her to wince in pain, "You're not thinking things through Mirajane, you are trying to push me aside with brute force. The exams would be next to impossible if that was your objective," Chimed the blonde, as he blocked or checked every strike Mira threw at him, she swung her tail around hard, Naruto wrapped it around his arm and pulled her in close, her back up against his coat.

"You're brash and hot headed, charging in without a care about what happens," He right hand moved around to his front, the nail on his index finger growing longer, placing it against her stomach as he leaned right next to her ear, his hot breath sending a tingling sensation down her spine, "You need to think things through, otherwise things like" He slowly started to drag his nail across her stomach, cutting through the fabric with ease and leaving a small cut,"this could happen more often."

Mira let out a small whimper as he reached the other side while Elfman stood up and ran forward, intent on protecting his 'nee-chan', "Elfman, come any closer and I gut her!" The only male Strauss looked at Naruto with narrowed eyes.

The blonde left arm let go of her tail, said tail fell limply to the floor. With his arm now free he brought it up to her neck, brushing away a few strands of hair, he let his fangs extend along with claws on the hand near her neck, "Or I could bite her, or even slit her throat, now sit Elfman," The boy did as he was told sitting on the ground directly beneath him, "Good Elfman, now let the adults talk."

Naruto lowered his voice and placed his lips directly next to Mirajane's ear, "Now... I have every right to fail you right now _but_, I like you guys, so we are going to try this once more, if you come attacking me again without any time of plan other than 'I must win!' I will just knock you both our and hand you to the master, am I clear Mirajane?"

"Mmmhmmm," She moaned arching her back into Naruto and turning to look at his cold eyes, "I didn't know you could play so rough, Naruto-_kun_."

A little flustered at how she just purred his name, Naruto let go and pushed her over to Elfman, completely missing the blush she held on her face, "Ok, lets try this again shall we?"

Naruto tilted his head to the side, watching as the Strauss siblings talked for a moment, both giving a small nod before moving forward, , Elfman moved in front of his sister, blocking the blondes vision of the demoness, Naruto nimbly dodged the strikes from the male Strauss, needing to catch one that would have hit him, both of them creating a dent in the ground beneath them from the pressure, dirt and stones flew up into the air obscuring the blondes vision further.

Elfman gave a small smirk, swapping from trying to hit the blonde to trying to hold him, his wrist spinning and latching on tight, large black hands came from behind him, extending from Mira's own trying to snatch at the blonde, "Using Elfman's size to block my vision of Mira casting a spell, it is a nice plan," Naruto stood still letting the hands wrap around him, he moved Elfman to the side looking at Mira who was concentrating and forcing the arms to constrict around Naruto's body.

Naruto flicked his wrist and held tightly onto Elfman, "Only you can not use your full strength from fear of hurting your brother, I can feel him trying to get away, almost like he is scared, will you keep fighting?" He questioned giving a small sigh afterwards as he saw the duo narrow their eyes.

**"Raaahg!"** A guttural roar came from Naruto's stomach, his power seemed to fly through the roof, Mira could feel the ground shifting beneath her feet as she tried to hold the technique, another roar left his throat sending Elfman to the ground.

Mirajane looked at Naruto, the blue in his eyes almost seemed to come alive trying to destroy everything in his path, she dropped to her knees, tears pouring down the side of her face as she canceled her transformation, the ground seemed to shift away under his feet as he moved towards her, crouching down and lifting her chin to look at her in the eyes, "I surrender..."

The extreme magical pressure vanished, he tilted his head to the side and smiled, "You two were able to work well together as a team, using a different strategy that would have been enough to capture most mages, on top of that you are smart enough to know when you can not win a fight... You pass Mira, good luck for the rest of the trials, the path ahead may be even harder than what I put you through..." Naruto spoke placing a hand on top of her head and messing her hair up a bit, she gave a small sniffle before jumping forward and playfully punching his chest.

"Don't touch my hair baka!"

"Pssh, anyway I will see you both later," He waved pushing her off of him and sprouting wings from his back, tearing down the path, leaving a gaping Mira on the ground, finally finding someone that could help her with aerial combat.

* * *

Naruto dropped next to Makarov, a small smile on his face, "Mira passed, I think Mystogan will need to drill some tactics into her though. Plus, the demon seems to enjoy being dominated, fancy that?"

Makarov threw his head back into a laugh glad that it was only him and Naruto for the moment, he could just imagine the look on Mirajane's face if someone told the guild about that.

The blonde looked at one of the exits and saw Laxus walking out with his hands in his pockets, a smug look on his face, "They couldn't even make me bring up a guard," Was all he said sitting down on a stone nearby, it was not long before Erza rocked up causing him to raise a brow.

"Mystogan said he had to take a call and will be here soon, but apparently we passed."

"Same, Cana put up a good fight but in the end mine and Ever's 'teamwork' won."

Naruto was about to question what he meant until he saw the heated glare he received, it seemed like he was just forced to take orders, definitely not worthy of S-rank.

"That means that Laxus got Reedus,"Mused the blonde Slayer listening intently as the sound of siblings squabbling reached his ear, "and there is my duo, already back on their feet so quickly."

Makarov shuffled around on his seat fora few moments before clearing his throat, "Good now that everyone is he-"

"Actually I am very sorry to do this master, but Naruto has been summoned by the Magic Council, it seems that they are one again in need of his special talents," Mystogan informed quickly as he approached causing Naruto to give a small sigh.

"They know I asked for some time off right?"

"Yeah, they are will to give you extra if you come in now, it seems really important. Apparently they called for Jura and Bacchus as well, along with some new guy who is meant to be just behind you in ranking, oh and because of some recent changes you are now the 7th Saint, congrats?" Mystogan offered still holding up a Lacrima in his hands, "Oh they want to talk to you."

Naruto walked over and took the communication Lacrima from his partner, _"Naruto-kun is that you?"_

With his free hand he rubbed the back of his head, "Yeah its me Ultear, what's up?"

_"There has been a situation, we have had to call in your generation along with an extra Saint, he joined after your group but he is pretty strong, please hurry. I know you are on vacation of sorts but we really need you guys for this," _

Naruto gave a small groan, "I will see if I am still needed here first," Looking around the master gave him a dismissive wave, "okay, we are on our way... you owe me big time Ultear..." Drawled the slayer as he cracked his neck.

_"I can think of many ways to repay such a favour, all you need to do is ask... Naruto-kun." _The communication cut out and the guild members were looking at him in shock.

"There is absolutely nothing going on between us," Deadpanned the blonde hoping that they would understand.

Mystogan walked forward and placed a hand on his partners shoulder, his cloak fluttering in the wind, "Yes, but does she know that Naruto?"

"Fuck you! You're meant to be on my side here buddy!"

* * *

January 12 X780

The call was simple enough in all reality, the job was already done, like normal though himself and Bacchus decided to go the extra mile, all of the escaped convicts were now tied together in the middle of the street without clothes on, further adding to their humiliation.

"_Siegrain _we need to talk, just you and me okay _buddy_?" The venom in Naruto's voice was visible, he had been holding on for so long but now there was not much more he could take.

The blue-haired mage looked at the blonde before giving a small grin, "Of course my fearless leader."

The two walked down the hall and left the others behind, a large ethereal hand crawled out of the ground blocking either side, "Cut the crap, it isn't funny Jellal."

"I have already told you Naruto-san, Jellal is my twin brother, my name is Siegrain," He spoke calmly taking a small breath afterwards and resting his hands across his chest.

Naruto tapped his foot on the ground out of frustration, "Sure you are, but a better question is, why the fuck do you smell like that fucken tower?!"

"I have no clue what you are talking about?"

"I will put this simply for you princess," Seeing the twitch on the blue mages eyebrow was all Naruto needed to know it was Jellal, not to mention he smelled exactly like he did all those years ago and even had the same magical feeling about him, "I destroyed that tower once before for reasons that would make your head spin... I _will_ do it again if I have to, regardless of who is in charge... so _if_ that tower is being built again, which I most certainly hope it isn't, I will tear it down along with whoever decided to build it again..."

"Naruto-san, you must have made some mista-"

Jellal was cut off as he was lifted from the ground, cold snake like eyes glaring holes through his skull, "_Don't_ fuck with me! I am normally pretty well tempered, but you have managed to Irk me at every single turn through the mission, always questioning my decisions, _you_ are not a part of our generation, no matter what you think... we were friends at a point... I had wished that you had made a new life for yourself, but I never imagined you would become the very thing we hated... I can only hope I am there when the council finds out, the look on your face will become priceless when I finally get the orders to dispose of you, leaving your crippled body to rot in a cell." Spat the blonde, doing all he could not to attack the man right now, his left arm was twitching wildly ready to strike, Kuraja was squirming inside of his stomach, wanting to be let out.

"Do you really think you could Naruto?"

"I would crush you, utterly destroying any faint dream you would possibly have of victory," Naruto left it at that, dropping jellal where he was and removing the hands from the pathways walking down the halls.

Ultear skipped out of her office and saw Naruto storming down the halls, her eyes went wide and instantly tried to figure out what was wrong, before she could even touch him though he held up a hand to stop her, "Your favour... Don't _ever_ put me on a mission with _Siegrain_ again, along with having my vacation start from the start, do this and we are even... that is all."

He didn't even give her a second look, stuffing his arms into his pockets and storming down the halls once again, he opened the room to where his generation was waiting, Jura and Mystogan gulping while Bacchus rose a brow, "Blondie, you cool dude?"

"I'm burning bro, Mystogan we are leaving," The edge in his voice was noticed right away, Jura gave a small bow and moved out of the way Bacchus stood up quickly and moved to the doorway.

"Bro, you look like you need a drink... take mine," The normally drunk man was surprisingly sober all of a sudden, his jug was being dangled by its string just away from his body, gently rocking back and forth waiting for the blonde to take it, reaching forward he did just that, giving a smile and nod to his drinking buddy.

"Next time I am in town drinks are on me okay?"

"Wild!"

* * *

Mystogan and Naruto sat alone in their carriage, they had gotten used to being transported in first class so anything less now felt strange. Naruto was currently seated on the floor, Kuraja's fangs deep within his neck. The group had found that Naruto's body had an incredibly good immune system, and this was how they improved it, Kuraja would spend his time working on a new poison, then test it on Naruto, it also did not help that the blonde found the experience somewhat relaxing.

Deciding the break the silence Mystogan put down the grimoire he had been reading and gave a small sigh, "So that was the me of this world?" His answer was a grunt from the blonde, "What happened between you two? I thought you were close?"

Naruto brought his head up and looked at his partner, "He is rebuilding the Tower of Heaven... or at least I think he is, I can't think of any other reason he would still smell like that place after all these years..."

It all made sense now why Naruto was so mad, the blonde had told him all about what had happened after his outburst last year, it was the first and last time he saw the blonde cry.

"I told Ultear that she can repay what she owes by not putting me on a mission with him again... It will come to blows between us, also this vacation is going to be spent training... I will not ask you to join me, this is my own fig-"

"Is that what you truly want Naruto?" Jellal spoke cutting the blonde off.

"Destroying the tower, stopping them from raising demons to walk the earth... that is the mission that the Fallen gave me, this is my fight, one that I will handle by myself... you are strong Mystogan, but I don't want to see you get hurt, let me have my selfish request ne?" Naruto opened his eyes, still feeling the sting behind them, an aftereffect of pumping so much magic through his body at once.

He clenched his fists tightly as the fangs were withdrawn from his neck, feeling his body slowly adjusting the the new type of poison, "Thank you Kura," he left his mouth open, slowly closing his eyes again as the snake slithered back inside, retreating to the other dimension.

"We are almost home Naruto... what are you going to do?"

"We will arrive on Erza's birthday, I don't think I can face her at the moment, so I shall just do the same as I have done for years... I will need to speak to the master though, I need to be pitted against him or Gildarts to improve, Laxus maybe if I don't catch him off guard, but I hardly think he would be happy to help me," Naruto thought aloud causing Mystogan to chuckle, his friend, you could either love him or hate him, there really was no in between.

The train came to a stop and Naruto swiftly moved out of his seat, blending into the scenery behind him and moving through the crowd, Mystogan actually had to wonder what Fairy Tail would think if they found out what the council was using his partner for...

Giving a deep sigh he left the carriage, his staves on his back and his destination Fairy Tail, it was not too long a walk, but by the time he got there it looked like the master was sleep talking, a few gift wrapped presents beside him, Mystogan waited for the conversation to be over, it was clear that the master was talking to Naruto, while for others it may look like he was simply sleep talking, once you knew what to look for it was obvious.

Thankfully they were able to arrive early enough to avoid any of the other members, the master seemed to nod his head a few times before he stopped conversing, Mystogan felt a hand land softly on his shoulder, "Gildarts is coming back to fuel up for another mission, I am going to meet him, Kuraja is lending you Kurama so we can stay in contact, do not abuse his sons gifts,"

He felt a small serpent slither from the hand and coil itself around his shoulders, Mystogan gave a small nod and continued moving to the master, feeling the hand leave him and the crimson snake slowly fade into view.

"Many people are starting to voice their worry about him..." Full with sorrow and regret the master had spoken, he had heard the truth about what happened, agreeing with the blondes method to deal with, if would be hard to convince the council of such a thing, but Naruto had no reason to lie to him, the emotion in his words made it all that much easier to trust in his blonde mage.

Jellal gave a tired sigh and dropped himself onto the stool next to the master, "I know, he is content to train and then finish this by himself... He feels it is his duty," he replied, not exactly enthusiastic about the idea.

"Has he ever spoken to you about his teacher?" Makarov questioned tiredly.

"Not at all, you?"

"I was hoping you knew something..."

* * *

"Well this got awkward really fast..." A large man in a cloak chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his head while he watched two blondes try to outdo one another in their training. Gildarts had been speaking to Naruto about what was happening when Laxus knocked on his door, the two had glared at one another for some time.

Now it seemed like they were training partners, never letting the otherone stop until one had reached their goal, their method was to taunt and prod, every now and again he would spar against them.

This had been going on for the better part of a month, it was actually amazing how well the two seemed to get along when they had the same goal in mind, to become stronger.

Eyes seemed to connect for the briefest of moments, both were mid push-up, a large boulder on their backs but it didn't stop the sparks from flying, "You got something you wanna say Bug Zapper?" Called Naruto.

"Not to you Scale-Brain!" Laxus retorted, watching his blonde rival pull the boulder from his back and crush it in a single hand, stone and dust flying in all directions.

"I think dem be fightin words Fanged Bastard," Taunted Naruto, Laxus would never know how the other blonde found out about his dragon-slayer abilities but it didn't matter, in return Naruto told him about his fallen-slayer magic.

Lightning started surrounded the dragonslayer, he gritted his teeth and destroyed the rock on his back, he stumbled to his feet and stormed over to Naruto, glaring at him intently, "Go eat a tree or something!"

The corner of the snakeman's lips twitched up into a smirk, raising his right leg and using Laxus as a spring board, letting his claws grow out and took a strange looking stance, lightning started to swirl around the scared teen , concentrating it towards his fists.

"GILDARTS!" The duo roared, not daring to look away from the other, "BE THE JUDGE!"

"Fine fine, rules are not to kill one another, also to leave my hut out of your fight, other than that go for your life... oh yeah, don't attack the city again, master wasn't too impressed," The elder stated simply stroking at the stubble on his chin.

He moved to stand between the two, drawing his hand into the air, the glares they each held grew more intense, the man quickly dropped his hand and the area exploded. The first exchange was lightning fast, both blondes landing on the ground shortly after, the tops of their outfits gone leaving them in pants.

Laxus had a few deepish cuts on his body while Naruto was covered in burn marks from the lightning, Naruto's blue eyes were glowing along with Laxus' own, the air around them becoming denser than some people would be able to handle.

Primal growling filled the air, both blonde were baring their fangs now, Laxus' arms increasing in their size while Naruto grow a tail from behind him, letting it sway from side to side as it carved through the ground.

Gildarts had seen both these forms before, Laxus was forcibly attempting to tap into his Dragonforce, Naruto on the other hand was letting his body become more primal, increasing his strength to amazing levels, the only drawback was he gained the mind of a beast.

"Laxus, you are going to have to stay on your toes now," The ace of Fairy Tail warned as spiked spines started coming out of Naruto's back, his wings shooting out and acting like large spears.

**"I-I'm still here, f-for now..." **Naruto managed to get out as he dropped too all fours and made himself parallel to the ground, **"K-keep up S-sparky!"**

Laxus barely had enough time to register his words before he had to raise his arm to block a heavy punch from Naruto, the ground seemed to shrink away from them in fear, Laxus opened his mouth and let out a heavy stream of plasma at his rival, forcing him to spread his wings out in front of him and curl his tail around him defensively.

Not giving Naruto any time to recover Laxus dove forward with his fist cocked back, **"Lightning Dragon's Breakdown Fist!" **

**"Grasp of the Fallen!" **The large purple hand shot up and blocked the raging torrent of lightning just before it impacted with its blonde master Laxus continued to put more pressure behind his technique, causing a spiderweb crack to appear in Naruto's defense.

With a mighty grunt he finally broke through, only to be shocked when the blonde was missing, he looked around quickly, feeling the ground break apart beneath him, he managed to lean back just enough so that Naruto's claws only cut his chin, leaving a large gash as the fallen blonde kept flying into the air, hovering above the ground.

Naruto's eyes were focused on the fight but his mind was in a different place, swimming within information finding something of worth his lips twitched into a nasty smirk, his mouth opening wide and his hands coming in front of it,

**"Fallen"**

**"Lightning Dragon's"**

**"HOWL/ROAR!" **The duo of slayers called, a large purple and black torrent flew from Naruto's mouth as yellow plasma flew upwards to meet it, the two seemed to battle for some time.

Naruto's strange technique slowly seeming to devour the energy from Laxus' own, pushing forward and closer to the blonde dragon, Laxus narrowed his eyes and dug his feet deep, pushing harder and gaining some 'ground' in their power struggle, a horn slowly pushed out of Naruto's skull causing his technique to push back harder.

Gildarts was about to intervene when he saw the magic slowly die down, Naruto lowering himself down to the ground and his body turning back to a more human appearance, Laxus fell down to his knees panting from the quickly setting in exhaustion, for a moment it looked like Naruto had come out unharmed again.

That was not the case to be, his body fell forward and his hands rushed up to his head, a pained scream filled the clearing and Gildarts quickly moved forward to see if there was anything to do, he got there and saw cold black eyes that seemed to bore through to his soul looking at him, "Voices, so many, hurts."

"Naruto, you ok? Is there anything I can do?" Gildarts rushed out franticly.

"Naruto? Yes Naruto, we are, Naruto, we scream, we fight, we all, Naruto."

Gildarts narrowed his eyes at the boy and picked him up by his arms, carefully looking him over, "I am looking for the Naruto of Fairy Tail?"

"He is we? Yes..." His eyes slowly started turning back to their normal iceberg blue with his snake like slits, "Fuck that hurt... I let them take over for a little bit and had to force my way back..."

"So you're you now?"

"Yeah its me, hows Sparky? He still kissing the dirt?"

"Yep..."

"Good fucking little Bug Zapper... I have a lot of things to work on now, but I still need to get control over my body fully again, it seems some of these souls have started fighting back," Naruto gave a small chuckle before clutching his side, the skin seemed to be melted there.

"He ain't bad for a 'Bug Zapper' is he?" Chuckled out the older mage as he put Naruto back down on the ground.

The blonde fallen gave a small shrug and opened his mouth wide, a pair of arms coming out and slowly pulling the opening down, spitting out a completely healed but out of breath Naruto, "He is, getting better," He replied during pants.

"Thats freaky as hell, try not to do that with a bunch of people around,"

"Why not? I am Fairy Tail's Snake King, I think the people would expect some strange things from me by now..." Naruto stretched his back seemingly ridding a few kinks from it, and crunching his neck to the side, "And I am almost back to normal again..."

* * *

Erza was standing in the backyard of Fairy Tail, across from her was Mirajane, demanding another rematch saying the battle during the exams wasn't Fair, "My partner just complimented my style better wench, there is no reason for you to get your non-existent panties in a not!"

"Bitch you are just jealous that I got to kiss Naruto before you!" As soon as the words left Mira's mouth Erza's face fell, no longer did it have that smug smile on it.

"Oh..."

"After that he held me closer and whispered in my ear."

Erza's head seemed to sink lower with every word, Mira was about to continue when a dangerous hiss next to her ear froze her in place.

"Master... foolish girl, try distract master... master bring her close... tell her warning... tell to start again... master is good... treat us right... don't speak ill... of master." A small crimson snake spoke next to her ear, its burning red eyes glaring at the side of her face.

Mystogan walked into the field with his hand behind his head, "Kurama, I told you not to wander off,"

"White one... speak ill... of master..." The snake replied looking between Mystogan and the still frozen Mirajane, the covered up mage walked forward slowly and put his arm out for the snake watching it slowly crawl up the appendage sitting in some spare cloth of Mystogan's mask.

"Don't go running off like that, Naruto will kick my ass if something happens to you, not to mention what your father would do to me..."

"You boring... need fun... give me red..." Kurama turned to face Erza and poked his forked tongue at her a few times, indicating what he meant by 'red'.

Mystogan walked over to Erza in a friendly manner giving a small wave, "Erza, would you be able to take care of Kurama for me? He is a stubborn piece of work when he wants to be."

Lifting her head up she saw the creature he was talking about, it was actually very pretty, if she heard correctly this snake was the child of Kuraja, the giant purple one that resides inside of Naruto, she met eyes with the red creature causing it to tilt its head to the side cutely, "I don't know anything about looking after them?"

"I teach... worry not... no bite..."

Reluctantly Erza put her hand out for the snake to slither along, pleasantly surprised by how fast it moved to the back of her neck and made it self cozy within her hair, she could hear its tongue flick out every few moments.

"We fine... you leave... Mystogan... Red look after... me... we talk ...to father... to master... tell of... good job..."

"Thanks Kurama, you will know where to find me if its needed," Mystogan spoke giving a small wave over his shoulder as he walked away, stopping next to Mirajane, "Attacking Erza while Kurama is with her, that would surely invoke the wrath of both Kuraja and Naruto... also, both snakes saw exactly how the exam went from inside of Naruto, both respect him greatly too, plus they can vanish into thin air, just like their master," Mystogan warned before walking off again, he had some training to do.

Kurama leaned upward and started playing with the earrings dangling from Erza's lobes, it quickly got the attention of said redhead, "Yes Kurama?" She questioned, hoping she got his name right.

"Smell... like master... a gift?" The serpent questioned getting a small nod from Erza, the mage watching as Mirajane turned and hurried away from the field, it would seem she was actually quite afraid of snakes that could just come and go as they pleased.

"Is what you said about Mirajane and Naruto true?"

"Yes... master was appalled... not thinking hard enough... forced her to... rethink approach... smart master...you miss master?"

"I-I do, I was going to tell him how I felt once I became an S-class mage, now that I have... he seems to keep avoiding me, he got me presents like every year, even signed his name this time but I know he is still in town somewhere, otherwise Mystogan wouldn't be here, I guess I just want to talk to him..."

"He trains... gets stronger... becomes better master...we can watch...from afar...not interrupt...father cross if do..." It felt as if the snake seemed to shiver when talking about his angry father, it started to make her wonder who was scarier, Naruto or Kuraja?

"Can you lead me to where they are?"

"Gildarts...Laxus...Master...Father... all training...all fighting... I know way...listen to directions..."

* * *

"I'm telling you now Fang-boy, you won't be able to learn it that fast!" Snapped Laxus who had been pestered by Naruto for them to go full-out again, thinking he could now control his form.

Naruto sucked at his teeth cracking his neck to the side, "It sounds like you are just scared, you know that if I can do it you won't stand a chance, the Fallen learn to adapt, to chance to hunt better, Dragons think they can stay the same and rule, yet where are they now?"

"If the Fallen are so strong, why haven't we heard of them before?"

"Cause nothing was left after they came last time..." Muttered Naruto under his breath, Gildarts missed the comment but thanks to his enhanced hearing Laxus heard it as clear as day.

"What are you talking about?"

"It wouldn't matter even if I told you, there is no point wasting my breath... so are we going to fight or not Bug Zapper?"

Laxus sniffed at the air for a moment, his lips tugging into a smile, "Well well well, it seems like just about all the decent mages of Fairy Tail are here, all we are missing is your partner Naruto..."

"Erza... you'll have to forgive me, I guess I have been distant lately, hey Sparky... go train with Gildarts for a bit... I think me and Erza need to talk," A certain amount of edge was held in Naruto's tone, letting Laxus know that no was not exactly an answer.

"Tsk, I had my fun with you anyway Scale-brain, didn't need your permission to see the old man," the blonde dragon-slayer turned on his feet and left, leaving behind a rather confused Erza.

"So, I can see Kurama has taken a liking to you," Stated Naruto as he moved past and picked up the currently invisible snake and let it coil around his arm, "You're doing a pretty good job, but your heat signature still hangs around in the air, are you ok with your father looking after you for a while?"

"Yes master... Erza take care... of me..."

"I am sure she did, she has a very kind heart," Naruto's words caused the scarlet girl to feel a strange warmth in her chest, it quickly disappeared as he turned his head away and regurgitated a giant snake that could swallow a man whole.

_"Kurama... I told you... no interruptions... come... leave them..."_

"Hai... gomen father..." Kurama slithered down Naruto's body and onto the one of his father, both of them vanishing into the woods behind the two mages.

"So, how can I hear Kurama but not Kuraja?" Erza stated bluntly, Naruto gave her a small smile and held back a chuckle from inside himself.

"Kuraja is a difficult familiar, he seems to enjoy only talking to me, but will take affection whenever its given. Kurama wanted to be able to converse with humans so we removed the blocker from him, meaning his words are spoken not thought," Informed the blonde as he found a decent tree, he grew his claws long and cleaved right through it making a place to sit, jumping up onto the falling trunk and patted it motioning for Erza to take a seat.

The redhead was left in a state of awe at how easily he just put his hand through trees she used to train against, "That makes sense... listen, I want to talk to you and I want you to listen so don't go running off before I am done okay?"

Naruto let his head tilt to the side, "Okay."

* * *

**PA: THE talk is upon us, plus there was his encounter with Earthland Jellal, we get to see a bit of Bacchus' caring side. Gildarts is helping Laxus and Naruto to become stronger, their relationship is going to be a lot like the one Naruto has with Sasuke, I know it is done often but it works the best, Kuraja has a son? One that is stranger then his father?**


	4. Chapter 4

**PA: Yeah this chapter came out much earlier than normal... it was just stuck inside my head, also for those who were wondering Yes I am still working on Black Knight, that chapter will take a little longer than normal, its one of those 'emotional' chapters... Always Chasing and A Hollow View on Life are both slowly making progress, I don't have a set date yet for their next chapters to come out though.**

**The end Pairing is going to remain Naruto/Erza, now I am not saying that a lot of shit may happen before they get together, and I am not going to say that nothing will happen between now and then.  
A few well known faces pop up in this chapter in pretty interesting ways, well I think so anyway.**

**ultima-owner: Naruto eating strange things will be an event that happens often throughout this story. Physically he can not eat a whole dragon but a few scales from one along with the acid he can produce? More than possible. Like the basilisk, it would have been impossible for him to eat the whole thing, but just a single part of it was no problem... apart from the major stomach pain of course. **

**BanefulWarrior: The lucky gal that bagged Kuraja? Well she is around... you may be able to have a nice guess by the end of the chapter...**

**mellra: His form is going to be more scales than fur, but that is a rough shape of what his form will look like by the end of things.**

**GreenDiesel: I am glad you are enjoying it so much, right now I don't need a BETA but that might change at a later date, I shall message you if it does, see what we can work out ne?**

**Unnatural Reader: Some of the additions from the Naruto world into the Fairy Tail world will be rather surprising, well hopefully :D**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto nor Fairy Tail.**

* * *

The wind gently blew between the pair, Naruto had his head tilted back, gazing up at the blue sky above him. Erza was cuddling her knees to her chest, nervous about how to start, how he would react, what would this mean? Plus she was cold, finding this the warmest position available, not exactly understanding how the blonde next to her was fine in what looked like tattered pants and topless.

Naruto to most would look like he wasn't paying attention, but in reality he couldn't be paying any more, hearing the changing pace of her heartbeat, they way she continued to fidget with her armour, looking from the corner of his eye and seeing the wind blow her hair and expose the gift he had gotten her last year, in place like normal. Everything that happened regarding Erza he noticed.

"Naruto... I know you are doing something important, but I feel like you are just constantly pushing me away, I don't want to just be somebody you used to know. We grew up together, we laughed together. Sure you couldn't get me to smile every day, but it didn't stop you from trying, always looking out for the rest of us, always willing to work harder to steal the eyes of the guards from our backs, yet you never asked for anything in return... Now you seem to be pushing everyone away, going down this path you don't want us to follow, but we are worried about you Naruto,"

A choked breath escaped her mouth, she looked up and saw Naruto's eyes looking at her. Those blue eyes, they used to be so full of hope, so happy, now they seemed empty, cold, dangerous, what actually happened to that happy-go-lucky blonde she used to know? "I'm worried about you, you always smell of alcohol, you... maybe its nothing, maybe its just you growing up before me, but somehow I feel it isn't'. Please let me back in Naruto?"

The blonde took a steady breath, "My life is pretty much classified, its become a joke, a drown myself in liquor just so I can get up the next morning. I know that I am pushing people away, but I can't help it, the Council has a tight leash on me at the moment... I hate seeing those around me cry... it's why I have tried my best to distance myself, not wanting them to see what I am slowly turning into, but now sitting here with you, I feel...okay? At least I think I do, ha, how pathetic is that, I don't even know what I am feeling anymore."

He leant back, flopping his body over the log and breathing out harshly, his eyes looking up at the slowly darkening sky, "I want to let you in, to tell you everything that has happened, but in doing so people would consider you a loose end, one that needs to be tied up. I couldn't live with myself if that happened because of me... I'm sorry, but right now, it is best if I work alone..."

He went to move, only to feel her soft hand grab onto his wrist tightly, "Please don't, I can't handle always watching you walk away, I have tried living without you around, it just isn't the same, it seems so dark, like I am back in the tower..." She was so caught up in trying to convey her emotions into words she didn't notice Naruto stiffen at the mention of tower.

"I don't care what I have to endure... I just want my friend back... is that so wrong to ask?" She pleaded, biting down on her lip and waiting for his answer. Naruto flicked his wrist, pulling it out of her grasp with nearly no effort, he moved over to the middle of the field, his hair shadowing his eyes.

With clenched fists he slowly took his stance, bringing his guard up in front, "They say that true fighters can read one another's souls when their fists meet. If that is true its a bonus, but if you want to know what has happened, then beat me, when you can I will know you can face what is coming... until then, I will have to keep you in the dark... I'm sorry."

"You don't mean to block my blade with bare hands do you?"

"I'll be fine Erza... trust me, come at me with everything you have, otherwise it won't be enough," The blonde spoke softly, his fingernails growing longer and his skin on his arms darkening a few degrees.

The Ex-equip mage slowly stood to her feet and walked out into the field, summoning two short swords, and taking a deep breath, her gaze becoming like steel, carefully she watched Naruto, unsure of whether he planned to stay in the one spot or not.

Dashing forward quickly, she thrusted her blades forward, attempting to clip his sides and prove a point, only for the sound of metal clashing to sing through the air, sparks flying from the outside of his arms, pushing her blades away from his ribs, and pulling her in closer, his hands quickly knocking her blades away, his legs wrapped around her own as he used her own body to pin her arms down, his right hand hovering just above her face, his claws barely an inch away from her eyes. What surprised her the most was that she had no idea what had just happened.

"You're a freshly minted S-class mage, I am recognised as the 7th strongest mage in Fiore... the gap between our power right now is one that can not be expressed by mere words alone. I don't know if you read what I was feeling, but I read you loud and clear... you're afraid, scared that you are going to hurt someone... I feel the same... you are not weak Erza... This is just beyond your skills at the moment," Naruto breathed out deeply, his mouth hovering next to the scarlet mage's ear.

"I-I just have to get stronger... then you will tell me what is going on?" Her question caused pause in his thinking.

Slowly retracting his claws and ruffling her hair, "That's right, become the person only you can be, gain the strength that is rightfully yours... become a Queen if you want to stand next to a King," Such a crude choice of words, but somewhere deep inside of him, his title actually mattered, was it because he had bonded more with Kuraja? Or was it because it kept the dark guilds away from Fairy Tail? Either way it seemed important now...

"Is that your way of asking me out?"

"Huh? No, no... Kings and Queens need to be strong, we need to be objects that people can aspire to be, or that people will hate, always pushing themselves to be better. It's the law of nature, the funny thing is though, those that have fallen, have the chance to rise and become something better, while the victor continues to lick their contempt lips, looking for a new battle, hoping to find one where they can be truly tested," He leant back, standing up and offering her a hand to her feet.

Erza tilted her head to the side, confusion clouding her thoughts, what was Naruto actually trying to say?

"My words, they will make sense one day, just like true beauty, sometimes it has to be pointed out to you, sometimes you can discover it by yourself. Honestly though Erza, it would be best if you left. I still have lots of training to do, I am sure you do as well," He moved to walk away, only to be met by the feeling of small arms wrapping around his body.

A face burying into his back, "Before you go, I know it is late but you are never here for your birthday, I have held onto it for quite some time you know," She pulled away from him and gave a small smile as he turned around, she held out a small black box with two hands in front of her, gently he took it and opened it letting a small smile creep onto his face.

Reaching in he picked up one of the pieces of jewelry, a diamond earring hanging from a small chain, it was shaped like a snakes fang, he quickly pierced his left ear and gave a smile, "I don't know what the other one is though..." He mused out seeing her give a small pout.

"I know it can be weird if guys have both their ears done, so come here and I will fix it into place?"

Naruto gave a nod and followed her instructions carefully sitting on the ground as she gave him a warrior braid on his right side, tying it together with a leather strap, finishing the entire braid off with a matching fang from his ear, "You really should look at getting a haircut some time soon Naruto, it is starting to get really long..." Mused the redhead, extending a hand for him to take so he could get up easier.

"I really should, but if I had of gotten one earlier, you wouldn't have been able to so fondly stroke my hair."

"BAKA!" Raged Erza has Naruto carefully swayed back to avoid her fist, quickly leaning forward again and poking his tongue out at her, a small tick mark appearing on her brows.

"I'll see you around Erza... Remember, become the person you were meant to be!" He called over his shoulder as he walked away, vanishing again into the woods, there was something he had to do, his training could wait for now.

"Become a Queen?" She mused, well how hard could it really be?"

* * *

_"You back... Go well?" _Mentally hissed Kuraja as Naruto walked into the clearly, he has already gotten changed into a new pair of clothes, as well as bathing so as to not dirty them right away.

"It... was interesting... Not how I had planned for it to go, but I believe we parted the best way possible. There are a handful of contacts I need to see... Are you up for a trip Kuraja?"

_"What of Kurama?"_

"I assumed he had chosen Erza, or is he to come with us?" Naruto questioned the crimson snake, seeing it curl up on its fathers back.

Its forked tongue flicked out a few times, "Go with red... get lift?"

"I can drop you off at the guildhall when we leave, I am sure you can find her from there?" The blonde questioned, watching Kuraja wish his soon goodbye.

Kurama slithered up Naruto's outstretched arm and made himself at home laying under the blonde's hair, Kuraja, seeing as how big he was would not be able to go through town with them, a snake of that size would cause a panic, thus Naruto stretched his mouth open wide, taking the snake inside of him, from what he knew, his dimension was rather large, there was almost a whole other world in there, it was kind of ironic that Naruto was the most interested in it, yet the only one not able to see it.

Once completed his feet struck against the ground quickly as he leapt through the trees, feeling Kurama almost tie himself into a necklace to keep himself in place, it did not take them long at all to reach the guildhall, the lights were still on and people were still running around inside. He slipped in and moved up to two that had gotten his interest right away.

Mira and Erza were arguing about something incredibly trivial, it seemed to be over a plate after all, without either of them noticing he was able to sneak up on them and left them both from the ground, watching as they flailed for a moment, trying to break out of the grasp until their eyes slowly turned to the smiling blonde.

"I thought you were leaving?"

"One of my friends wanted to keep hanging around you, so I was basically dropping him off and letting Mysto know I will be heading out for a bit. So I came in here expecting to see everyone cooling down after a long day, yet you two happen to be starting an argument... its like 10 pm, isn't that past your bed times?" The blonde mused getting two very harsh glares sent his way, Kurama sliding down his arm and placing himself at the back of Erza's neck again, a small shiver escaped her body from the action.

"Sorry Kurama, it will just take some getting used to on my half..."

"Its okay... strange sensation?"

"Very, I didn't exactly think that I would ever have a talking snake curled up around my neck," She mused while still being held in the air by the back of her shirt, just kind of dangling their back and forth while Mira and Naruto seemed to have started their own argument.

"Who the hell gave you the right to man handle me?! Huh answer me that one?"

"When you get strong enough to stop me doing this, I will stop! I didn't think it was that hard for you to figure out Mira!"

"Well clearly you don't know me that well!"

"Y-you just insulted yourself Mira..." Naruto thought it would be best to point that out, but he noticed the Strauss grit her teeth as a magic circle appeared above her, carefully he tossed Erza into the air, quickly knocking out Mira and laying her on the ground before catching the scarlet haired mage again, "You aren't gonna start squawking at me are ya?"

It would seem as if he had gone back to being childish once again, that meant he was normally in a good mood, tilting her head to the side and giving a bright smile she gave a simple "No"

"Heh, good girl," He gently put her on the ground and shook his head at Mira, always so hot headed, "Oi Mysto you in here!?"

The telltale jingle of Mystogan's clothing rang through the air, his head appearing over the second level's balcony, "Yes?"

"I'm heading over to Hargeon... I just thought I would let you know, incase you wanted to come."

"You meeting _her_ again?" The question was answered rather quickly with a short "Yep!" from the blonde, Jellal had to repress a shiver, his memory of last time quickly came to the forefront of his mind, "Count me out, she is crazy!"

"You're over reacting, really she is a nice girl, sure she is a little strange at times, but so am I right?" Naruto's hand was scratching the back of his head sheepishly, he couldn't really understand why Mystogan was so scared of her? She wasn't that bad right?

"Whatever, have fun and let me know when your back," Jellal offered the blonde mage a small wave, Naruto returned the gesture by throwing one over his shoulder as he walked away, taking his jacket off and spreading his wings out.

"See you all later," With his coat shrunken down and kept in a sealed pocket he opened the door, his wings taking a giant flap before he flew into the air, leaving the guild behind.

* * *

It did not take him long at all to reach Hargeon, it was rather late at night, meaning the streets were crawling with all kinds of people who should be behind bars. What made the situation even better was that he was heading to the worst part in town, a bar called 'Devil's Maiden', his hand opened the door and heads turned up to look at him.

A few sneered but no one moved to take action, there were certain rules that had to be followed in this establishment, one was clear, 'Leave Snake King along, and you keep your head.'

Ignoring those around him he moved up to the counter, a beautiful black-haired woman with ruby-red eyes was washing down a glass, a smile making her kissable ruby lips all that much more tempting. She met his gaze and put the glass down, leaning over the counter and showing off him a clear view of her rather large breasts, "She is expecting you Naruto-kun, would you care to share a drink with me before you see her?"

His hands were deep in his pockets, his eyes looking around trying not to fall into any trap that lay around the place, everyone that worked in this establishment was a mage, most were considered 'dark', it was his duty to hand people like these over to the Rune Knights, but he found them more useful outside of jail, "Actually Kurenai, I was wondering if you would be able to give me a haircut, while I talk to your boss, of course you will be paid for such an action."

Kurenai walked out from behind the bar, she was wearing a black dress, it was tight and only came down to mid-thigh, showing off her creamy white, blemish free skin, Kurenai was the second in charge of the bar, no one really tried anything against her, mostly from fear of what the boss would do, little did they know that the black-haired maiden was just as scary as her employer.

Her hand came down and grabbed his, guiding him to the back room eyes trailed the pair as they moved, "Anko-chan, his here," She spoke softly after knocking against the door once, the shuffling of footsteps was heard before the door slammed open, a rather large bust jumping out at him, of course this woman had many other qualities but with how she dressed, this was the most noticeable.

A black bikini top barely keeping her 'pythons' away from the public, a burnt orange miniskirt covering just what it needed with a tan trenchcoat over the top to keep her warm, her eyes were a bright brown, her hair pulled back into a pineapple shaped purple ponytail. A cruel smile plastered along her lips and a flask of what smelled like wine attached to her hip, "Naruto-kun... it's so nice to see you again, SAKURA! Keep the bar in check, no mistakes this time or I am taking it out of your hide!"

"Hai Mistress!" was shouted back quickly as a pink blur made its way behind the counter, a large smile on her face as her emerald-green eyes looked around the room quickly, making sure everything was in place.

The purple-haired woman stepped forward taking Naruto's free hand and leading him into the room, Kurenai trailing behind him, once the door closed Naruto moved to his normal seat, it was clean and only used by him, soft padding for his rear, back and his arms, a deep red while the rest was made with a strong oak.

"Things are going good Anko?" Naruto questioned watching the scantily dressed woman move around her office, quickly going through files that he might be interested in, "As good as they can Naruto-kun. I must praise you for doing such a good job, keeping the council off my back, really makes operations easi-"

"I told you, as long as you keep providing me with information, I am not completely fazed with what you do, as long as things stay within reason. The council knows that you are where I get my information from which means you get a little leeway, but not a hell of a lot... remember that?" He asked folding his right leg over his left, Kurenai placed a towel around his neck and had a pair of scissors and comb in hand.

"How much do you want off Naruto-kun?"

"Do what you think will look good, just leave the braid as it is..." His voice came out softly causing her to nod and start trimming.

"You are a very lucky man Naruto-kun, Kurenai wouldn't cut just anyone's hair, are you sure you don't want to join us one night?" Anko mused swaying her hips from side to side as she continued to move in between the shelves.

Naruto felt the soft hands of Kurenai turn his head to the side and start chopping off large lengths off his hair, it had been a few years since he last had it cut, it was rather funny, Kurenai was the last one too cut it as well, "As tempting as the offer sounds, I just don't think I am ready for a commitment of that kind."

"This isn't because of that thing that I do with my tongue is it?"

The 'thing' Anko is talking about would be a method she used to deal with people who didn't pay her, it involved her tongue playing with a razor blade while pleasuring the person who did her wrong orally, her methods were effective and it got her point across, 'Fuck me and I will fuck you back, in a way you will never forget.'

"Hardly. A relationship is just the last thing on my mind at the moment..."

"I don't want anything like that, I am just asking for one steam filled passionate night where we screw each others brains out!" The exclamation from Anko caused Kurenai to gasp at how blunt her partner was being, her hands nearly cutting off a portion of Naruto's ear in the process.

"Casual sex? I am sorry to say Anko but that is not exactly my style, plus I want to keep that portion of myself intact, for if I ever find the right one..."

"You mean when that little Erza notices how much you actually care about her?" Mused the purplette as she swayed back to her desk, a large bundle of folders in her hands, the small glare she got from Naruto was the only answer she needed, "Its not that hard to figure out Naruto... don't worry though she is safe from my patrons and myself... I do wonder though what you see in her though, she seems quite stroppy? Stroppy is that the word that I should use here Kure-chan?"

"I would think so Anko-chan, no offense Naruto-kun," Replied the raven beauty as she started on his fringe.

Naruto gave a small shrug of his shoulders earning himself a playful slap from Kurenai, "Don't move around so much, I might accidently cut off an ear," She whispered out in a near breathless voice, it was incredibly arousing he had to admit, even though it came across as a threat.

"In those folders... do you have anything on the Tower of Heaven?"

His question caused Anko to pale a little, she knew just how much the blonde despised the place, "Reconstruction has started to take place, I am not sure where they are getting their new slaves from though... I have some information on slaving guilds if that interests you?"

"Not at the moment, do you have anything on Ultear Milkovich yet?"

Anko fumbled around with the files for a moment, pulling out the one he requested, "She is quite the looker I will give her that much, her fingers seem pretty clean, for a council member anyway... there are a lot of unexplained absences though, that could just be because she is young and want to have fun though?" Mused the information broker causing Naruto to sigh.

"She seems too smart too simply just not show up to work... there is just this nagging feeling about her, something just doesn't feel right."

"Naruto, you feel this way about every woman who wants you in their bed, some might actually just find you attractive you know?" Anko replied giving a tired sigh afterwards, putting a label down on the girls file, she would have someone chase up more information on the woman.

Kurenai had finished cutting his hair and started brushing him down and combing his hair into place, his blonde hair was much shorter now, it still had its silly spikes protruding from every angle but now his face was mostly visible, sans a few loose strands falling down and the braid on the right hand side, "I trust Kurenai, sometimes I trust you, but we both know that the devil shouldn't be trusted right?"

"Fair point, also you look nice, long hair doesn't seem to really be your thing Naruto... Ultear might just jump you the next time you see each other, I find it rather strange though, this dark guild keeps popping up everywhere, you interested?" She crossed her legs in such a way that allowed a quick peep if you were interested, of course Naruto would not be inclined to take such an action, but he now knew she was wearing black panties... it was not by his choice though, it was because Kurenai had murmured the colour after the action had taken place.

"Seems interesting, what have they got their hands in?"

"A bit of everything from the looks of things... could prove to be trouble further down the track," She handed the folder over to him watching as he opened it, "They called themselves Grimoire Heart, pretty much everything I know is in that file, I know it's not much but I keep hearing whispers about them... call it a 'nagging feeling'," A smile crept over her face as he looked up and gave her a playful glare, using his own words against him.

He felt a hand brush against his cheek, sliding down to his chin and guiding him to stand, before he could react ruby-red lips crashed against his own, he was forcibly pushed back to a wall, her hand trailing around to the back of his head and grabbing his hair roughly, as quick as it happened it finished, Kurenai was back to where she was standing before like nothing had happened, "Your payment is appreciated Naruto-kun."

The blonde nodded slowly and saw Anko taking a step forward, his eyes narrowing on her, "Try it, and I'll put you down,"

"You always know just the things to say to turn me on Naruto..." She breathed out taking another step forward, she let her hands slip out from the cuffs of her coat, large white serpent heads following behind them, Naruto drew on of his own hands down, its black clawed form taking the stage.

"Turn around before I rough you up again Anko?"

"You know I always liked it rough Naruto..."

"Anko-chan, I am sure Naruto-kun has many other things he should be doing right now, he doesn't need to get into a fight with us again, it will only waste everyone's time and nothing will be learnt from it," Kurenai spoke softly walking forward and placing a hand on Anko's shoulder, moving her head forward and claiming the purplette's lips for herself, Anko's hand moving down and grabbing onto Kurenai's round backside and lifting her up, the pale legs of the raven beauty clamped down around Anko's waist, their bodies became one as their lips smacked against one another, Anko's other hand came down and slid up Kurenai's dress, eliciting a moan from the raven-haired woman.

They broke apart a few moments later, staring into one another eyes, "You taste pretty good Naruto, but can you leave for now? My kure-chan has been a very naughty girl!" Anko spoke, the sound of handcuffs clamping down filled the rather quiet room.

"Anko-sama... please be gentle..."

"I shall leave you two too your own things, thank you for your information, you know how to contact me when it is needed, until then?" He moved giving a small wave over his shoulder a slap rang through the air followed by a short moan.

"See, you, later, Naruto-kun" Moaned Kurenai between her spankings, the blonde just shook his head and left the room.

Naruto walked up to the bar and placed down a bag of money, his eyes met with Sakura for a few moments, "A beer, please, the rest is for your boss, also it would be best if you don't disturb her now... she is dealing out punishment..."

Sakura nodded in understanding, quickly placing a fresh beer on the bar for him, giving the blonde a bright smile, "I don't see many people like you... whats your name?"

"Naruto, but around here people know me as Snake..."

The blondes statement caused Sakura to gasp, nearly dropping the glass in her hand, "You're Snake-sama? The one that helped out with that issue a few years back?" Her question was answered with a small nod, "I expected a brute of a man to be honest... you look rather refined and pleasant, to the eye at least."

"Kurenai makes sure that I dress nice, she is rather pedantic about the whole thing..."

* * *

He had rented a room for the night in a nearby motel, nothing too fancy, he mostly just needed a bed to sleep in, knowing today was going to be an exhausting one, he was right.

One long boat ride later had put him at the place of some of his nightmares, the Tower of Heaven, reconstruction had already started. With a frown on his face he payed the captain his money and told him to turn around, no questions were asked and the captain did as he was told, watching as the blonde stood on the edge and summoned a giant snake, the captain had never heard of magic like that but anything was possible in this world right?

Kuraja let out a sharp hiss at seeing the tower again, its body floating effortlessly on the water, Naruto dropped down and landed on his back, standing upright and glaring at the view in front of him, "We shall destroy the boats and leave a message, I don't want to shed much life if it can be avoided... the council would ask too many questions," Naruto spoke coolly Kuraja got the message and moved forward at a high pace, one that made the boat they had arrived on seem slow, an hour later their job was done, engraved up on the tower was 'Don't Fuck With Me!'

The very same line he had spoken to Jellal of Earthland... it was a shame to see how far someone was willing to go for reasons that couldn't be understood. Naruto was much the same, he had condemned the entire tower and all those guards to death, just because he made a promise. Now the very same thing was happening, was he to let things play out or should he take them into his own hands once again?

With a tired sigh he headed back to land, both him and Kuraja knowing the way back now, it didn't take them long but he still felt exhausted, mentally of course... the worst kind.

The duo had taken a train ride back to Magnolia, it was spent with venom coursing through Naruto's body in an effort to help him relax... his breathing was heavy and forced compared to normal, Kuraja couldn't comprehend the stress he was going through, having one of your supposed friends trying to bring back a terrible nightmare... that could do things to a person's mind.

"Fallen magic has an enhancement section too it right?" Naruto's voice bounced off of the walls of their empty carriage, _"Yes, know this, you do?"_ Replied the snake, yes Naruto had suspected such a thing, but he was never completely sure, "Would they carry over to blades?" _"Fallen Enhancements make extensions powerful? Yes, yes possible, difficult, but possible."_

"I think it is time I started training with daggers than. It will be interesting to see how far they can extend..."

* * *

July 3rd X781

Over a year had passed quickly, Mirajane had become an S-class mage, something that she let the entire world know about, constantly she took the higher ranked missions and bragged about them upon returning, Kurama had grown a bit, no longer was he just a cute little snake that followed around Erza, the scarlet mage was quite surprised when he started spewing what looked like lava from his mouth at one point, his response was "Gift from... Master..."

She had enquired further once the request was over, finding it rather impressive that the snakes living inside of Naruto, gained perks form what he ate as well. It had explained many things regarding Kuraja, for starters how his scales had become tough enough that they could block blades with little difficulty, reports regarding the Tower of Heaven came less and less.

He was rather worried, but he knew Anko would call for him if she needed his help. Currently he stood in a training ground, two curved steel daggers in his hands crossing over each other in front of him, his feet in a rather narrow stance, allowing for quicker movements.

Across from him was Erza, two long swords in hand, their serpent partners seated not far from the duo, conversing with each other. Erza moved forward, causing Naruto to dip to the side, her slash came down quickly, with agility only heard of in stories Naruto twisted his body, bringing his front foot up and clipping the blade, his new steel plated boots allowing for the cut that would have happened to be shrugged off as nothing, not even a chip scared his shoes.

Faster than the redhead could blink she felt three swift strikes hit against her armour, a fourth was a boot to the chest, causing her to stumble back as the pace changed, Naruto now ducked in past her defense, his daggers in hand as she tried to force him back, she knew he had been practising with his knives, but to see him come so far in only a year astounded her, between strikes he was able to swap the grips he held by spinning the blade in his hand and catching again.

His movements were fluid and rapid fast, she managed to parry them off to the side, stepping forward and attempting an elbow strike, it landed but caused her to wince instead, his body was harder than rock, he returned the favour, an elbow straight into her armour causing her to almost double over in pain, the only reason she didn't would be the foor quick kicks she copped to keep her upright as he finished by sending her into the air, flicking a dagger at her as she flew, making sure it was blunt end first incase she couldn't block, the act caused her to frown, it seemed he was still not taking the spar seriously.

it was aimed at her skull, with a small grimace she leaned forward and caught it in her teeth, gracefully dropping down to the ground and smirking across at the blonde, a small 'tsk' escaped his mouth, he spun his lone remaining dagger around and held it in the reverse grip, a purple/black shroud forming around it and extending its length in an instant.

Erza frowned, the amount of close calls she had where it only just missed vital points on her body could have been lethal had he wanted them too, she watched him lower his dagger to the ground, the shroud cutting through the earth like a warm knife through butter.

It was a warning not to get hit by it, she gave a quick nod and readied herself a leopard print outfit was currently equipped allowing her to keep pace, if barely, part of her figured he still wasn't even going all out, she gave a small blink, in that time he had closed the distance, his hand inside her mouth holding onto his stolen blade.

Her eyes wide in shock, "They say a snake can strike almost two times faster than a human can react to it... blinking slows your reaction even further," He stated simply, removing his dagger and jumping back again, letting the shroud die down from his other dagger, he took his stance again and grinned at her.

It was like nothing had happened, he looked exactly the same as he started, not even a drop of sweat had left his form, there were rumours that Naruto was gunning for the sixth spot in the Saints, meaning he would be just behind their own master, yet ahead of Phantom Lords... it was strange to think that the blonde before her was up there at the same level as one of the more famous guild masters in the land, yet he could still take time out of his day to help with little things like this?

Thats right, Erza was the one that requested this spar, wanting to see how she stacked up compared to someone of his level, so far she had learnt that he could have killed her over 53 times so far, yet she still continued, she was learning so much even though she was getting 'creamed' in a sense.

Erza engaged again, watching the blondes body sway to the side before moving, she knew he was doing it on purpose, it was telegraphing a fake movement, if she hadn't become so used to it, the action would still get her every time, but then again, he could always just follow through with it once or twice and really throw her off her game, she brought a kick around only to have it matched by her partner, she flicked her other leg up in an attempt to pin it in place.

He moved to fast, as her body twisted to perform the maneuver, he had already lowered his leg and brought it around behind her, giving a small flick to her back and putting her off-balance, three swift strikes with the butts of his daggers his against her armour as she stumbled forward, a fourth to the side of her neck, it was all finished off quickly, she felt his legs curl around her neck and bring her to the ground, he stood over her body, his boot resting against her throat, not bothering to apply any pressure, she looked up and saw it looked like he never moved from where he had stood, she was positive those were his legs though, she noticed a small cut in the ground from where his dagger must have struck, as he slammed his hands down to act as a support.

His body was much to agile, not to mention he had his near superhuman strength on top of that, and the ability to strike as fast as well a snake. He was unbelieveable, she envied his skills, yet she also knew he worked harder than anyone to get to that level, while he might joke around a lot, she had seen him training one day... there was no way her body would be able to do half of what he did... for a 'warmup'.

"You've gotten good, almost at the speed Bacchus was when we first met, not to mention your strength and agility is getting up there as well, had you been a few years earlier you may have been number ten instead..." The blonde mused placing a hand down for her to grab onto, she accepted and gave laboured breaths now that it was over, they had been fighting for nearly an hour, she watched him flick his knives into the air, putting his jacket on and catching them in the sleeves all in one motion.

"Still not good enough for you to talk though right?"

"Exactly... I said you had to become a Queen to stand next to a King, I wasn't joking about that."

"I still think you are trying to tell me something there..." Mused Erza out loud watching the blonde turn away with a small blush, she had to admit, he was incredibly good-looking, his personality was strange but so was hers, she had grown as well, no longer keeping her hair back in a ponytail, now it ran free down her back, with two bangs dangling and framing the side of her face, her earrings still in place, part of her thought she hadn't removed them since she had put them in.

She looked over at Naruto and saw his still in place, the fang hanging from his ear, and the braid that she had fixed earlier, apparently she was the only one allowed to touch it according to Mystogan. She saw him playing with the fang hanging from it every now and again when he was in the guild.

Speaking of Mystogan, he was seated not too far away, next to Mirajane who was patiently waiting her turn. Both mages had agreed to take turns sparing against Naruto, the blonde more than happy, seemingly testing out his new style against them, they would always come up against new types of moves.

Mira jumped out onto the feild quickly activing her Satan Soul takeover, her siblings cheering her on, it was the first time they had ever watched one of the spars, not knowing exactly what to expect. Elfman let his eyes wander to the blonde every now and again, narrowing each time, a flashback of when they had come up against him nearly two years ago during the exams, playing as clear as day.

The exchanges were quick and brief, a few bruises appearing on the take over user, Naruto looked like he had just come showed up for a days work, not even dirt on his clothing, his jacket was tossed to the side and daggers were in his hands again, the next exchange ended with a few light cuts on Mira while Naruto landed on the ground, his braid swaying from side to side... "Don't you find it strange, no matter how strong we get Naruto always seems to be an impossible hurdle in front of us, tempting us to jump over him?"

Erza's question had caused a few to look over at her, theirs hands clutched tight, understanding just how right she was. It was the same with Mystogan, while he didn't always spar with someone when they asked, his skills were shown strongly, while not on the same level as Naruto, he could keep pace with Laxus.

The blonde Dragon-slayer had been informed of what the situation was there and agreed it was best to keep his mouth shut regarding the entire thing. Gildarts had left on a longterm mission, a 100 year quest... no one really knew the details about it, so like normal Naruto had done some digging, finding out that it was involving some cult group, apparently set on sealing demons inside of people, using them as weapons... this world really was filled with freaks.

Half an hour passed and Mira gave up, no longer able to maintain her take over, she dropped down to the ground and Naruto helped her over to the side, Erza had a small notebook out and was taking notes, notes that were never to be seen by outside eyes.

It was rather strange, most people saw the control freak side of the scarlet mage, always telling the guild members off for misbehaving, yet few knew she only did that to keep her mind off of what Naruto was up to, when he was around she was a completely different girl, self conscious and always worried about what he thought. Not that Naruto would know, his thoughts were often preoccupied at these points, his mind in a completely different zone.

During the past year Erza had met Ultear a few times, mostly to speak to the council about damages caused by Fairy Tail... The two got along about as well as she and Mirajane did, while they seemed nice enough when they were in public, as soon as they got behind closed doors, arguing and fighting was almost guaranteed to follow.

It certainly didn't help that Ultear was one of the main reasons behind Naruto constantly not being around... it only seemed to fuel the fire between the two girl, of course this was all done out of earshot of the blonde... or so they thought, Naruto would never question how Anko was able to get spies inside of the council, as long as he continued to get quality information from the woman.

That was someone who Naruto never wanted Erza to meet, Anko was as crazy as they come, while sure Erza could become a really hot and seductive fighter... she could also turn into someone who is just as likely to kiss you as she is to kill you, hence why Mystogan was positive he didn't want to see the duo again, he may of accidentally let slip just how hot Kurenai was in front of the purplette, nearly costing the prince his babymaker...

He had heard a rumour that the 'Devil's Maiden' was no longer accepting male customers, he figured that may partly be one of the reasons he had to do rather ridiculous poses for photo's to get Anko's help with learning to use the daggers, while the woman lived a happy life where she was now, a few know where she came from, those few being himself Kurenai and maybe her old partners... if she let them live.

Anko was a harsh woman, an even harsher instructor but it was worth it, he had received a manual written by her on the style she used, even going as far as calling it 'Serpentine Dagger', it was all about moving faster than your opponent and using their movements against them to inflict as much damage with as little effort as possible, at the back of the book was a large table of different herbs that could be mixed together to get different types of toxins that would stick to your blade...

Yeah... Anko was someone that Erza could definitely be kept away from.

"You didn't wear yourself out did you Snake?" Naruto turned his head to meet the only person that would bother calling him that anymore, Mystogan still in his same old outfit, a bundle of staves on his back.

Naruto cracked his neck and rolled his shoulders forward, "I can still go a few rounds if you want Mysto?"

"Hardly I know there is not much point I already have what I need to work on... The master was talking to me earlier, a request for you to take a mission came in, apparently a dark guild has been raiding a bunch of settlements a few towns over, they were burning a strange looking fan into the houses that they have looted..." The covered mage spoke raising the request up in his hand, SS-class, Requested to be handled by Naruto 'Snake King' Uzumaki, by order of the Magic Council, act on your own discretion.

A small sigh left Naruto's lips, "At least they aren't calling me for everything anymore, you coming Mystogan?" He questioned the blue haired mage shook his head slowly.

"I would only slow you down, they all seem to be fire users... a real shame Natsu hasn't picked his game up yet, if only that boy could focus on his training, he would actually be a real juggernaut."

"I agree, can you let the master know that I will head out tonight? I need to go get ready," The blonde had a look cross his eyes for a few moments, 'Act on your own discretion'... it was the council's code for him to not hold back, lives would be taken this mission... that much he knew.

He turned and walked away, not giving a wave, Kuraja rose his head and saw his partner leaving, trailing after the man as Kurama slithered up Erza's armour and sat around her shoulders. It was still rather strange having a crimson snake follow her everywhere, let alone talk and spew lava from its mouth, they got along really well though, he even helped to scare those that would try to act out of turn.

She turned to speak to Naruto only to see he was already long gone, she gave a small sigh bringing out her blades and practising her swing and stance change overs with Kurama striking out every so often, making her get used to fighting off balance.

* * *

July 5th

His hood was drawn up, cloaking his features from the world, by his side was a large snake, coiled up and standing next to him, his eyes snapping around in the dark, this was the next village in their path, he had arrived yesterday and set up traps around it, the villagers themselves had been moved to a shelter below, to keep them from being harmed during the fighting.

Two daggers spun around in his hands, he had learnt that everyone in this Guild used fire magic, along with having black hair and coal eyes, it sounded more like a clan than a guild... Uchiha... such a strange name.

A few shadows broke out past the treeline, seemingly scouting the path ahead, each gave some strange signal, around fifty bodies moved forward, each stalking their way across the grassy path, Naruto looked to the side, giving his partner a small smile, "Its time to get to work Kuraja... keep one alive... information and all that jazz," Naruto stated before he blended into the dark, jumping down and landing without a sound on the grass.

A few seconds passed and then it started, people throwing out magic left and right trying to figure out what was attacking them, as they were slowly being taken down one at a time. Long arcs of blonde flicking into the air, Kuraja swept down onto the field, vanishing from view and quickly taking out a man's head, keeping his momentum up he struck at a woman, sinking a paralyzing poison into her legs she fell down to the ground, her guild members around her being swatted down like flies while she was forced to watch helpless, an absolute massacre of those she had grown close to, those that took her in when she was helpless.

In a loud screech the fighting stopped, all that was heard was the steps of someone heading in her direction, his feet squelching on the blood stained grass, they came to a pause near her head, she would have flinched if she was able to, her body was completely disregarding every command she made, his white sleeve came forward, grabbing onto her cloak and lifting her from the ground, she came face to face with glowing blue serpentine eyes.

"Now... you and me are going to have a nice little chat, once the poison wears off of course... during said talk, you will tell me everything I ask, without so much as questioning it, if so you get to go off to prison and thats the end of it... if you try to resist... well there are many ways to make such a nice young lady talk... don't you think Mikoto?

* * *

**PA: Boom and the Uchiha's are involved, what did you all think of the chapter? Did you enjoy the development between Naruto and Erza? Can anyone see where this little event with Mikoto could lead to?**


	5. Chapter 5

**PA: I'm back and damn was this chapter hard to write... stick it out and you will figure it out I guess, now yes this chapter is a little long but it finish up the year we were on and completes a second, next chapter is going to be completely none cannon meaning its time to really let loose...hehe. **

**NeroYagyuu: I was already thinking of doing such a thing haha, Kurama's name is a mixture of his parents but it was also to introduce the 'Bijuu' so to say into the Fairy Tail world, yes they will be around as familiars. I also wanted to write him just taking them then and there but that wouldn't be to his character which sucks... but we have to reap what we sow.**

**ultima-owner: There will be many interesting places in this story haha.**

**Guest: don't do what? I can't not do something if I don't know what it is your don't want me to do...**

**Unnatural Reader: Anko's character will be around for quite some time, you don't have to worry about losing her just yet.**

**Lednacek: ...really man? Daggers are a versatile _tool _used to end one's life, some are not curved but hell others have one heck of a curve, really it depends on the users preference and the forger as to whether it will be a 'slasher' or a 'stabber'.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything used inside of this story.**

* * *

Naruto's feet trudged through the thick mud, his body being weighed down by Mikoto, he had gotten all the information he needed out of her... funny really a nerve heightening toxin can make even a tickle scary. Currently she was knocked out so to avoid giving away his hideaway, he had managed to receive the information about her Guilds whereabouts on the promise that her sons would not be targeted by him... if they attacked him first it was fair game, that was something he made very clear to her.

The issue was incredibly clear, they were out of blood, tearing through the countryside looking for members of an old dispatched guild known as 'Silver Siren', he was not quite sure what the feud was about, but so far he had not seen any retaliation.

With a large grunt he shifted Mikoto around and tied her to a tree, the squelch of someone standing in the mud ringing out behind him, he didn't pause what he was doing as there was no further sound, indicating that the person had stopped, a sigh escaped Naruto's mouth, he had a pretty good idea of who it was anyway, "I am going to presume because you are not attacking me you are infact Itachi?"

"You are returning my family to me... she seems unharmed and in good condition... you are kinder than most but I saw your performance two days ago, the way you massacred my friends and family, it shows that you are not afraid to take drastic measure, the distance between myself and you is too great for me to clear in the time it would take for you to kill my mother... attacking you when you mean no harm would do no good. I take it you have terms for her release though?" His voice was calm and his reasoning was clear.

Naruto finished tying Mikoto to the tree before turning around to face Itachi, a single clawed nail resting on her shoulder, "I am not having a good time doing this, but if you guild is willing to back down and forget about your revenge with the Silver Siren's and stop raiding the villages, I will ask the magic council to forget about this, also I gave Mikoto my word, if yourself and Sasuke do not start something against me, I shall leave you alone when all is said and done..."

"Then we will have a problem... I am sorry but it seems it will come to blows between us at one point Snake King... I wonder what did you lose to gain your powers?"

"On the verge of death what could be called my... guardian angel come to me, you taste like myself..."

"I killed my father... I saw he beating my mother one night and could no longer take it, with that I took control of the Guild... my family is important to me Snake King... I would kill one member to save enough, I honestly feel we are not too different you and I?"

"Death brings about something knew, a fresh beginning..."

"Over the bodies of the fallen we shall crawl..."

"...taking in their knowledge and strength..."

"...in order to secure my position on the top..."

"... where none shall stand as my equal..."

"... drip drop..."

"... the sound of progress."

Naruto let out a long sigh and draw his claw back, "Two kings battling for the throne, your attacks shall not break through my scales Itachi."

"My feathers shall keep me out of your maw Snake King," The stoic reply came from Itachi as Naruto started to blend in with the environment vanishing from view.

"I shall give you a chance, regardless of your words..."

Itachi raised a hand to brush away the bangs from his face, his other resting inside his black cloak, a navy blue t-shirt was just visible in the dim moonlight, the sound of wings beating down entered his ears as a large crow landed on his shoulder, "Is it really smart to go challenging him like that Itachi?" It whispered gently into his ear as the Uchiha slowly bent down and begun to untie his mother.

"I am not going to perform a sneak attack on him Shisui, I was just being honest with him, as a Fallen of the birds I will not be caught in his mouth," He breathed out calmly undoing the final knot with his dagger and pocketing the knife, picking his mother up in a bridal style and walking through the mud with such grace.

"Reptiles have creatures that can fly as well Itachi..."

"Yes but I doubt he is stupid enough to eat a Wyvern."

* * *

Naruto was mentally cursing as moved at great speeds back to his hideout, he hadn't expected Itachi to be like him, who would of ever thought that there would be more than one Fallen-Slayer, certainly not him the door slammed shut behind him echoing off of the stone floors.

His mouth opened wide and summoned Kuraja, the large snake exiting without any difficulty and coiling up on the floor next to the shabby, almost prison like bed Naruto slept on while he was here.

"This is not what I had expected when I took up this mission, why didn't _he_ tell me there would be others?"

At the mention of Naruto's old instructor Kuraja lifted his head to look at the blonde, said blonde currently was seated on the bed with his head in his hands staring intently at the ground, _"Fallen collective, many souls, many beings, thought you, understood?"_

"It's safe to assume he is a bird type though correct?" His question was answered with an affirmative hiss, "More than likely we will but stuck fighting in the air... that is my worst area... should we be worried about anything else?"

_"Feathers... they fight, dirty. Kin-slayer, do not, trust."_

Naruto clenched at his hair tightly, feeling the braid slap against his hand, a strange feeling welled up in his chest, constricting like a serpent around his heart, "I have to return to Magnolia... something doesn't feel right, we leave tomorrow morning, traveling as fast as we can, it will just be a quick check then we will put this mission behind us."

_"Understood Partner."_

* * *

Naruto opened the large guild doors, walking swiftly past the members checking each one quickly, Itachi said that they would have to come to blows... he had no idea how the man planned on doing that, a gentle hum caught his attention it was coming from the bar, a black-haired woman was seated calmly swaying her drink back and forth, the way she was seated along with her choice of dress and the tune she was humming all pointed to one person, "Kurenai?" His question caused her to turn on the stool and meet his questioning look, a few other members of the guild looked over at the interaction between the two but said nothing, "What are you doing here?"

"It would be best if we talk with your master in private Naruto-kun... _quickly_," She emphasized the final word causing him to nod and look over the balding man who jumped down from the bar top and walked over to the stairs, the two following without a single word.

Erza and Mira watched with keen interest, not sure what was happening or how Naruto knew that woman, plus there was something different about Naruto, Kurama seemed to notice it too from the way he had been staring, now though he just huddled into Erza's hair trying to hide from the world.

Kurenai shook her head as the door closed behind them, letting her brave face fall and tears slowly stream down her face, "The Uchiha's baited you... the information was false and they recorded what happened, sent it to the magic council and some of the surrounding papers... it is going to be published, our informants have said that the council is denying all actions saying that you acted outside of their normal boundaries... they're throwing you to the wolves," She bit out walking forward and hugging him, feeling just how tense he was he now understood exactly how him and Itachi would come to blows.

Makarov watched slightly confused by the actions happening in his office, Naruto took a deep breath and turned his head to look at the master, "The council has been using me as a hitman since I became one of their Saints..." He trailed off seeing the master gasp, he decided to continue taking a deep breath trying to push the lump in his throat down, "I always worked under their orders, but it seems false information has really kicked my ass this time... I want you to do something for me though Makarov?"

"N-naruto?" The older man questioned seeing the determined look on the blondes face.

"Fairy Tail does not need this... so please expel me from the guild, it will look better for you guys, showing you do not tolerate this kind of behaviour, I will go into hiding and keep you guys safe from afar... I don't want to burden my family with my issues right?"

"Naruto... we can work through this, that's what families do!" Makarov protested seeing the blonde try his hardest to keep his composure, it was no secret that the blonde enjoyed his time at the guild, while he may seem like a bit of a prick at times he truly did enjoy everyone that was there.

"Jiji, please..."

Makarov took a step forward and frowned, he grew a little taller to stand at the same height as Naruto and put his hand on the blondes head, Kurenai quickly moved away and let the two do what they needed too, "When this is all sorted out, you are to come back here, first thing understood?"

"Hai Jiji!"

"Naruto Uzumaki... it is with a heavy heart that I remove your mark, while we may no longer be present on the outside, we all hope to still hold a place in your heart, as you have one in ours... goodbye my child..." Makarov bit down on his lip to stop it from trembling, this boy really could not catch a break, everywhere he turned he just seemed to get hurt more and more.

Naruto felt the sting on his shoulder, he brought his jacket down and saw the mark fading away into the air, he blinked a few times surprised at how hard it was to watch, he nodded his head once it was done and turned to the door, Kurenai in tow behind him, "Jiji one last thing..."

"I will look after her, you need not even ask..."

"Thanks Jiji."

Naruto's feet had never felt heavier as they slowly walked down the stairs, ignoring the questioning glances that were sent at him, he knew Kuraja had already told his son what happened, he trusted Kurama to know what to say to Erza, as they reached the door the worst person he could possibly run into showed himself.

"Looking at the company you are with... I say something big went down," His tone was one used for probing to try and push some information out of the intended target, when he saw the look in the blonde's eyes he gasped stepping aside and letting them pass, the giant doors opening and the sound of metal boots striking against the ground rung heavy.

"Naruto Uzumaki you are under arrest!" Called what appeared to be the captain of the battalion in front of him.

Naruto looked over to Kurenai, ignoring the gasps that were heard from inside the guild and let his wings spread wide, "No, that bastard wanted a fight... now he has gotten a fucking war, you won't be taking me here!" With a loud roar he flew into the air disappearing from view a few moments later, gracefully dodging the small capture spells that were sent in the direction he had been heading.

The captain gave a heavy sigh but called the capture off, his eyes turning to Fairy Tail as he stormed up the steps just as Makarov came down from his office, a look of question on his face, he was doing his best to keep his bubbling anger down right now.

"Master Makarov, we have been issued a warrant for the arrest of one of your mages, named Naruto Uzumaki, the magic council orders you to assist in his arrest."

Makarov looked at the paper that was practically shoved into his face and laughed, "I can't help you officer, Naruto came clean about what happened, as of less than five minutes ago he is no longer a part of Fairy Tail... he is your problem now... not ours!"

Mystogan narrowed his eyes at the words that were being tossed about, finally taking a step forward and looking the captain in the eyes, "You know none of the other Saints will believe this right? Whatever you are charging him with has to be fa-"

He would have continued had it not been for Makarov placing a large hand over his already covered mouth, "Like I already said officer, we can not help you, so if you could please leave, currently you are distracting my guild from their daily duties."

The captain narrowed his steely gaze, "You are playing a dangerous game Makarov, is this really what you wish to do?"

Makarov gave a small chuckle and pushed Jellal into the guild, leaning in close to the captain with a wide smirk, "I am not the one that turned his back on a hitman... should your council really have made something so strong only to dump him as soon as something was found out?" It was all spoken in a whisper as Makarov didn't know how many knew about the real situation, he assumed the captain would otherwise this was going to be incredibly confusing for all parties.

With a large huff the man turned on his feet and walked away, his company trailing behind him.

Makarov mirrored his action but came face to face with five he really didn't want to see right now, the Strauss siblings, Erza and Mystogan... sometimes being the master really wasn't as easy as he made it look.

* * *

It was approaching nighttime when Naruto and Kurenai dropped into Hargeon Town, the blondes hood drawn up and covering his hair as the raven-beauty lead the way with him in hand, there was something she wasn't telling him, but bringing him to Anko meant he was about to get more answers than he could ever hope for.

A metallic scent drifted through the air as they grew closer and closer to the Devil's Maiden, his snake-like eyes narrowed, littering the ground around the bar were the bodies of rune knights and Uchiha guild members a like, a few of the regular patrons could be seen in positions that would look like they were stopping them from entering the establishment, he saw Kurenai stiffen at the scene, he rested a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"We should enter, it sounds like they are still fighting inside..." His words caused something in Kurenai to snap, her hands stretched out to the side three black orbs leaving her fingertips and heading over to what used to be corpses, lifting them off the ground and taking control of them, with heavy feet they landed back on the ground and bowed, "Well it seems someone has been holding back on me..." Naruto mused watching as Kurenai's head snapped towards him.

"I do not enjoy using my magic... but if it is to save those I care about, I will condemn myself if need be," She stated with finality, her zombie soldiers moving forward and tearing the door from its hinges, Kurenai's hair whipping around in the night as the group moved forward, Naruto had managed to summon Kuraja during the time she was talking and the snake was moving just behind him, its eyes and tongue working in overtime.

Large plumes of fire lashed out towards them Kuraja slithered in front of the group and shielded them with his body, the flames not even able to leave a scratch thanks to the Wyvern mutation that Naruto put them through, "Kuraja... devour, support Kurenai's soldiers for this fight, we will head further in."

He assumed the answer was yes as the large snake tore through the lines making quick work of the grunts, Naruto put a hand on the raging Kurenai's shoulder in an effort to calm her some, "Lets go, they can take care of things here."

"No, I need to be able to see the bodies to control them... you will have to go ahead Naruto-kun... please make sure Anko is ok," Kurenai pleaded with the man not taking her eyes away from the fight.

Naruto gave a nod as he walked to the back-end of the bar, he saw the door had been kicked off and turned his head over his shoulder, "We will all be drinking again soon Kurenai... you can bet on that."

An explosion of magical energy flew from where Naruto had been, his body no longer there but the floorboards that had been beneath him utterly destroyed, a large rumbling followed by a crash told everyone he had run into something, the sound of a thousand birds all chirping at once filled the burning night sky as more and more flames were thrown around slowly setting the town ablaze.

Naruto clenched his scaled hand around the lightning covered one in front of him, "Sasuke I take it... the only Uchiha allowed to use lightning magic, son of Fugaku the old leader and brother of Itachi the current one... why do you attack here?"

Sasuke let a smirk spread across his face as black feathered wings sprouted from his back, carrying the duo into the air, the action caught Naruto by surprise allowed Sasuke to land a quick knee into his gut before tossing him down to the ground, "The one you knew as Anko... she was the ace of Silver Siren's... we just came to get our revenge," He roared looking down at the blonde as he twitched and removed some of the rubble that had gathered on top of him during his fall.

Naruto stood to his feet looking around and seeing Anko laying prone on the ground behind him, with a sigh he lifted up her body and sunk his fangs into her neck injecting one of his toxins, with a small smile he pulled away watching the wounds on her body slowly start to heal and fizzle from the venom inside of her body, it was a mixture that himself and Kuraja had formed some months ago, it put great strain on the body but allowed it to heal from even the greatest of injuries.

He tossed her body to the side watching as Kuraja quickly caught her and shielded her body from what was happening around them, taking a deep breath Naruto summoned his wings and flew into the sky, glaring across at Sasuke, "You brothers are really starting to get on my nerves... and yes Itachi I know you are there," The blondes voice brought Itachi out from behind the chimney on a nearby rooftop.

Large wings sprouted from his back as he flew into the air with a heavy flap, hovering next to his brother, a loud screech filled the air and Naruto watched a giant crow dash down at Kuraja only to be knocked aside by his partners tail and fly back into the air coming around for another strike.

"I'm sorry but we only have one familiar between the two of us... your snake will just have to cope with Shisui, you should know Naruto... the numbers are against you it would be wise for you to give up," The older Uchiha spoke raising his hand out in front of him his nails turning to claws as feathers slowly covered his body, Sasuke mimicking the actions of his brother and receiving the same effect.

"I gave you the choice Itachi, but it seems you decided to spit on my generosity," Scales slowly creeped over the blonde and spikes slowly protruded from his back, "Now you hurt my friends, tarnish my name and the reputation of Fairy Tail... for that I will make you both pay," His jacket was torn to shreds by the mutation meaning it would only get in his way, with a quick yank he sent it fluttering to the ground below him he noticed Itachi and Sasuke had done the same with their cloaks.

Naruto clenched his hand tightly causing the sound of bones cracking and rearranging to ring through the still sky where the three stood, lightning crashing down around them moments later, managing to miss those that were still fighting on the ground.

Sasuke tilted his feathered head to the side and looked at his brother, red hawk eyes meeting the same, "I do not believe he is worthy of your time, let me handle things!"

Before Itachi even had the chance to respond Sasuke flew forward covering his hand in lightning and bringing it down to strike at Naruto, the blonde tilted his head to the side as a large tail came up behind him, wrapping tightly around the feathered Uchiha and constricting causing a scream of pain to fill the night air.

Naruto's face twisted into a sinister smile as he brought the boy closer, bringing his hands up and ripping the wings from his back, Itachi sped forward, intent on saving his little brother only to watch him be released from the tail for a moment, watching its scaly form lift up into the air before coming crashing down and sending him to the ground at a increased pace, his snake eyes turned to Itachi and he tilted his head to the side, "Are you going to rush me too Itachi?" He watched as the older Uchiha's eyes swapped from him to his brother over and over, "He lives, if that is what you are wondering. Hopefully you will fight better than him though, I haven't even finished stretching yet..." As if doing so proved his point he rolled his shoulders forward loud crinks coming from the action.

"Attacking a man's family is the greatest sin one can commit," Itachi replied brushing a black bang away from his glowing red eyes.

"Anko... we don't always agree with one another, but I guess I would see her as family of sorts, she looks out for me and I look out for her... you preach what you now commit?" His teeth gritting inside of his mouth as his cold blue eyes locked with the burning red before him.

Itachi scoffed and flew forward, narrowly dodging the tail of Naruto, his fist reared back and trying to strike the blonde, his razor-sharp eyes picking up movement from the side but his body was not in a position to react fast enough to the incoming fist sending him flying back, his wings nearly breaking off against a roof, with a snarl he stood back up and glared at Naruto, "A Silver Siren is no friend nor family, they _will_ lead to your death Uzumaki!"

Naruto vanished from his position landing on the roof near Itachi, his arms crossed in front of his chest as his tail swayed back and forth behind him, the braid that was made sometime ago flicking and mirror the movement of his head as a scoff came from the blonde's mouth, "I _am_ the king Itachi, neither you nor your brother stand a chance... you should give up your stupid pitiful dreams of revenge as I will protect those I care about from scum like you, _that_ is the duty of a King," Naruto raised his hand high into the air, feeling his dark magic shroud its scaled form.

He brought it crushing down stopping an inch from the face of Itachi who blinked widely thinking he was done for, he saw the twitching of Naruto's ears and his lips pulling back and baring his fangs for the world to see, a loud bird call ripped through the skies causing the blonde to snarl and Itachi to shake.

"That brat gave in... I guess I will just have to put him down," Naruto turned his back to Itachi and spread his wings wide taking off into the air a moment later leaving a cloud of dust behind him, a warm sensation slowly creeping up on his back, turning his head back he watched as a large purple barrier shot up out of his back and blocked the incoming fireball.

Turning to face Itachi the blonde smirked closing the distance between them in an instant harshly kneeing him into the air before performing an axe kick to send him down through the roof of what was hopefully an abandoned house. With a sneer Naruto spread his wings and hovered into the air, "Stay down you stupid fuck!"

Naruto would have continued to vent further but a loud screech caught his attention, his primal side having already made deep roots in his fighting style, forcing him to leave Itachi alone for the moment as Sasuke dropped down from the clouds in the form of a large crow or raven, Naruto himself was not entirely sure nor did he care right now, he would ask Mystogan later.

Lightning shot down from its talons and tore through the ground as it large wings ripped up some of the surrounding buildings as it pushed forward. A deep growl left Naruto's throat as he rose up and went to punch the bird square on the beak only for a feathered hand to grab his fist, "Why the fuck won't you Uchiha just stay down?!" Bit the blonde glaring at the bleeding Itachi who had his glowing red eyes on display.

* * *

Kurenai nearly collapsed as she finished fighting off the aggressors, the only thing that stopped her was that she was still yet to see Anko, in a panic she moved around the destroyed bar, seeing the towering form of Kuraja wrapped protectively around two smaller forms, his top half swaying from side to side fighting off a large raven, it was then that the purple hair of her partner came into view, without thinking twice she ran forward towards the battle of beasts.

His slitted eyes saw her approaching and left the two in her care, letting Anko and her snake partner out from his protective grasp, the deep crimson snake with a white tribal like pattern flowing down her scales staying close to her master in her smaller form, knowing Anko couldn't spare the energy required for her to battle something like the crow alongside her mate.

"Kurenai-sssan, we need to move Anko-sssama away from here," The red snake spoke with a lisp as Kurenai moved forward and picked the two up, stumbling away from the battle ground that the bar had now been turned into.

Kurenai watched as the red snake kept looking over to where Kuraja was fighting, a small frown adorning the humans face, "Makashi he will be fine, now that we are out of the way he can use his mutations, now he can finally let loose ne?" Kurenai questioned trying to sound strong, honestly she didn't know just how strong the snake was, she had seen him fight well a few times but never against something like this.

Kurenai managed to carrying Anko and Makashi out of the line of Sasuke's attack, watching as the bird Kuraja had been fighting against flew up to aid the giant one that was against Naruto and the somewhat humanoid bird man who looked worse for wear.

"**KURAJA KEEP THAT FUCKING PEST OFF MY BACK!**" Naruto roared causing the large snake to hiss and grow large wings that mirrored Naruto's own, taking off quickly into the air and striking out at Shisui while Naruto clashed against the two brothers, dipping in and out landing quick but strong strikes against them, finally understanding just how much of a pain it was to fight someone that could heal just about anything you threw at them.

Kurenai widened her eyes at seeing just how fast the large snake could move when he was in an open area, now thinking back to the few times she had met him, mostly when Makashi was with his child, she found it strange how much of a difference there was between the familiar snakes and regular ones, even going as far as to see Makashi snuggling up with Kuraja once with the former in her larger form.

"The flying rat isss a asss good asss gone. Alssso Anko-sssama hasss Naruto-kun'sss toxin running through her, ssspeeding her healing," The crimson snake stated softly, resting her head on her masters shoulder while watching Kuraja fight off the large bird.

"D-did you know he was like that Makashi?"

"Ofcourssse, he is _my_ Kuraja."

* * *

Naruto's hands twitched in annoyance, the feathered pest had attacked him and left a mark on his scales, letting Naruto know it was in fact a familiar, he felt the blood slowly run down the side of his face from his forehead.

**"I will tear you both apart, plucking the feathers from your broken and beaten cadavers, using them as toothpicks as I feast when we are done here... filthy pests," **Naruto bit out letting his more primal side come to the forefront of the battle, his clawed right hand raising and wiping the blood from his brow and snarling, his muscles bulging and increasing in density as his shoulders and hips moving around in their joints, slowly rotating to increase his speed.

"You say my brother has become a beast, yet looking at you know I see only a beast no longer a person worthy of the title King..." The humanoid bird trailed off looking calmly at the blonde as he took his evolution to a new level.

Naruto growled out lowly and felt his bones snap into place, causing him to hunch over slightly to compensate for the new form, **"I am still in control... I _am_ King... learn this Uchiha as it _will_ be your final lesson!" **

Itachi clenched his fists tightly summoning a katana out of his black feathers into his hands, holding it out to his side, causing Naruto to raise a brow in question, he had heard of making weapons out of his skin, but never thought to do such a thing... it would seem Itachi's fighting style was not as stiff as his attitude.

Naruto let his shroud take over his arms, black on the right and purple on the left, his breathing becoming heavy, his mind was already convince, Sasuke was going to be the heavy hitter, Itachi would be doing his best to cover his little brother, he watched Kuraja land a heavy tail on the Shisui causing him to smirk wildly, **"Fucking pest."**

Sasuke let out a loud shriek causing Naruto to hold back a pained flinch as the brothers dashed forward, Sasuke in his bird form casting a shadow over Itachi causing him to shy away from Naruto's vision, the large talons from Sasuke came crashing down onto the blonde causing him to raise his arms up to grasp at them, ripping a few of the claws from the bird.

His tail snapping up and blocking the sword strike from Itachi, feeling it slowly dig into his scales causing him to snarl and snap at the raven men, letting his claws dig in further to Sasuke's feet feeling his malevolent magic pulse into the child's body, a wild smile spreading across his face as his tail snaked its way up Itachi's arms and constricting tightly the snapping sound of bones ringing through the air.

A strange feeling surged through his tail causing his smile to drop and his eyes to narrow a hiss of pain escaping his mouth as feathers sprouted through his tail cutting through it just above the mark from Itachi's blade, a pained roar escaping the wide-eyed Naruto.

A large shrieking sound followed Naruto's roar, a loud thud ringing not too long after as a large shadow was cast over Sasuke, Naruto kicked Itachi back watching the bleeding purple scales wrap around the raven child, constricting and relieving the pressure from Naruto, allowing the blonde to get his hands back, using them to start pushing Itachi back.

In a panic he quickly used a large fireball to try to form some distance between the blonde and himself causing Naruto to pause for a moment, letting his fallen defense swat it away, **"Do you actually know _any_ Fallen magic?" **His tone mocking and full of disgust.

"What are you talking about? The Fallen don't use magic?!" The reply from Itachi caused the blonde to drop all his facial expressions and stare blankly at the man before him, lifting his magic covered hands and waving them a little as to prove a point.

**"Your teacher has set you up to become food, your brother give into his urges and you can't even use magic!"** Naruto spat out as Sasuke broke from Kuraja's grasp. It was not such a hard feat for the bird the large size difference it was at least four times bigger than the snake and Kuraja was quickly being over powered.

Naruto jumped back and shot his hands out to the side, the black shroud covering them completely as his mouth seemed to move in slow motion for Itachi** "Fallen's crushing grasp!" **Two large black arms shot out of the ground and moved up into the air moving faster than Itachi could react but seemingly in slowmo so he could only sit and watch, his hand barely twitching in response, the rain around them seemingly coming to a pause as the large snake flew straight up slapping its tail against his brother's head, stunning him as the hands came crushing down a sickening crack ringing through the air as Naruto clapped his black hands together.

**"Beasts should learn to keep their tongue as they kneel at my feet," **His hands came apart and Sasuke fell to the ground his head squashed and his body motionless. Itachi stood still watching in disbelief.

Something snapped in the older Uchiha, his hair flying into the air and his arms turning into large claw like blades, "Fuck...You. I will bury you you piece of shit," Itachi bit out snapping his head to the side before he laughed out loud and charged forward recklessly no longer caring for his life.

Naruto didn't even raise a brow, he had seen this so often now that it no longer bothered him, removing the humanity from someone was a task he was good at... it made his job easier, no longer did he have to hunt them down instead they would just run at him, swearing vengeance for the blood on his hands.

His hands moved together one black one purple quickly summoning a large blade from the air around him and swinging it forward a crescent like blade of energy flying out of its tip and cleaving through Itachi shoulder, removing his arm and one of his wings sending him spiraling towards the ground, without even waiting for the body to slap he changed the form to a large fist and sent it crushing down just as the body bounced from the ground, a large crater forming underneath.

Kuraja circled around Naruto protectively while the blonde snorted feeling his mind come back to its normal carefree self, "He has a twenty percent chance to live, a king has to be generous right Kuraja?" His head tilting to the side as a smile stretched across his face his scales slowly falling away as Kuraja quickly healed his wounds letting Naruto lay down on his back and letting himself power down to heal fully.

_"Too kind, we slaughter, we evolve!"_

"Tsk, we can't evolve from people like that Kuraja, plus they would taste bad they have _that_ look about them, and I don't like eating people, it feels wrong..." Naruto replied not really feeling like an argument at the moment, but he would if he had too, only with Kuraja of course.

The duo landed on the ground and quickly made Kuraja carrying Naruto made his way to the others, quickly picking them up and leading them away from the burning city, a twitching arm and a sinister smirk lay unwatched as Naruto compared the way the city burned to how his life had become.

Naruto knew that Itachi would live, he had to, this war was far from over.

* * *

Four days would pass before Anko was finally lucid enough to talk, her head thumping in pain and a pair of delicate arms strawn over her body, raven hair carelessly covering their forms and the heat of her lovers body beside her.

The door to the concrete room swung open and a very pissed off Naruto stood there, his hands in his purple attire, seemingly it was all he had at his hideaway, his white daggers rested on his waist, "Its good to see you are up... you have caused me a lot of trouble you know?"

"G-gomen, I didn't think it would come to something like this, I didn't want you to get involved yet it came to just tha-" She started only to be cut off as Naruto started talking again, his tongue seemed sharp enough to pierce through her strongest defense without pause.

"Mystogan dropped by earlier... told me the guild is in shambles, Jiji is ready to start ripping his hair out from stress and Erza has flipped, always enforcing the rules no matter how stupid they are, training as hard as she can so she can bring me back from this life. Laxus says what I did was right and that killing _should _be allowed, he formed a group and is now taking missions none stop... has already completed seven since I left, tell me something Anko, do you have any other secrets for me that will turn what's left of this charade of a life upside down?" The hooded blonde shook his head and his mouth twitched, he had a lot to think about these past few days, now he was pissed beyond what could be considered normal.

Anko sighed deeply as she sat up holding a hand to her head and disturbing Kurenai, "I'm sorry about what happened right? I guess I am going to be in your debt for quite some time over this shit storm... from what I know the only one's out to get me are the Uchiha's and maybe Isabella, a pirate spends her times near Kakaru port, its a place where a crook can make it big or end up in a casket all within a day. Could be a pretty good place for you to hide out for a while. With the right info of course," She mused out regretting it when Naruto's eyes narrowed on her a light blue glow coming out from under his hood.

"Ok so now is not the time for jokes, look I honestly didn't mean for shit to get like this, I know we are or at least were pretty tight, so there has to be someway to fix this right?"

"Not unless you can rewind time, actually tell me more about Kakaru."

* * *

July 15 X782

Her boots scuffed against the wooden panels on the ground, bodies around her still carried their rise and floor, still retaining their lives yet it was only on a whim, "Isabella, is the boss in?" Her voice was rough, tan coloured cowboy boots over the top of leggings, a red and black striped skirt coming down just past mid-thigh, her top was a loose black long-sleeved T while a chunky fur jacket was drapped over her shoulders, just showing the holster that held two ivory pistols, her purple hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she head a wide smile on her face as her amber eyes took in the sights around her.

"He is upstairs Revy, I didn't think he had any jobs for you so I have no clue why you're here." Isabella wa a darker woman, ironically she dressed mostly like a pirate but held a sharp tongue and wasn't afraid to go a little further to get the job done, almost a year ago in one night her bar head been taken over, ofcouse she knew who the man was everyone fucking knew but no one would dare sell him out.

He had ties to businesses all through the port, not to mention everyone knew just what he would do to someone who tried to sell him out again... the Fallen King of Magnolia... or just King for those around here. Isabella couldn't really complain though, while he attracted some 'rougher' patrons the money he brought into the place was much more than enough for her to overlook the fact, she may have had to swallow her pride and announce a truce with Anko over the whole deal but she did feel much safer now as long as the 'King' had his place to drink and find people to work for him, he was happy, the fact that her little bar was that place meant she was under his protection... while of course _some_ tried to start a fight here, more often than not people would take them out just to get in the mans favour.

Revy was one of his workers, a cold-hearted woman with a dark past, she knew people who could let him move shipments of goods through the waters without any trouble, he paid incredibly well, her feet scuffed against the steps leading to the top floor, it would seem she was not the only one here to see him as thugs were littered all around him either waiting for work or just talking with one another, things were rather calm though as she made her way to the free seat across from him, he exhaled a large cloud of smoke from his mouth, his pipe hanging loosely from his lips, by his side sat the large snake Kuraja some people wondered which was more dangerous the snake or the man?

"Revy... currently I have no jobs for your crew, if you are willing to wait a few days I should have a new 'shipment' for you." The blonde mused watching as she smirked at the prospect of another job. He held up a hand asking to pause the conversation as he lifted his other to his ear, his eyes narrowing further as time passed, "Vulco, take your men to the eastern docks, it would seem some rats are nibbling away at my products... I want them taken care of." A group of men quickly stood and filed down the stairs to follow his commands as he gave a heavy sigh.

"Having some trouble boss? You know I can always lend a hand if your paying well," Revy let her smile widen and tilted her head to the side as she flicked her wrist.

Naruto gave a small chuckle and emptied his pipe into the bowl in front of him, instead picking up a cigarette and lighting it before offering one to Revy who took it and smirked, Naruto breathed out a heavy cloud and let a small sigh leave his mouth, "It is nothing you need to worry about Revy, just some pests that need to be reminded not to nip at my toes. Now I am more interested into why you are still hanging around..." He rose his brow as Revy placed her feet up onto the table.

"I got some information for you, apparently there is a King of Beasts wandering around... I was under the impression that their could only be one 'King', meant to be a sizeable head, worth a lot of money... I heard from a rather credible source that a family from Fairy Tail has gone after it... the information on the request sheet _may_ have been false." Mused the girl as Naruto let his eyes widen for a moment, his long jacket flowing as he stood up.

"Revy... have you been using my contacts again?"

She smirked and kicked her feet off of the table, standing to attention next to Naruto, there was a fair height difference between the two even though he was only a year older at 18 he was easily six-foot tall, his mind was sharper than any she had seen before making him quite a force when he felt like it, "Only the ones you have given me access to King, that little Anko is quite helpful when she wants to be," The glee in her voice was almost visable, the two got along really well.

"I... was wrong I _do_ have a job for your crew, transportation like normal, get me to this supposed 'King of Beasts' before the team from Fairy Tail arrive, do this and you will be paid well, like normal of course."

"On it boss!" She quickly cheered pumping her fist into the air as she took down the stairs behind him Kuraja managing to move in time with the blonde as he was wrapped around him protectively, a large envelope was dropped onto the counter by the snake.

"Its payment for Vulco's gang if I am not back in time, you will do well to make sure that he gets that won't you Issa?"

"Hai King, they will get their payment, come back soon yeah?" She called as she was wiping down a glass a bright smile on her face.

Naruto put his hand into the air and gave a small wave, his long coat flapping with the movement, its fur lining was made of only the finest wolf pelts as his black steel plated combat boots left heavy thuds along the ground. His hair now was like a mane while his defining braid remained, it was the only thing apart from his markings that remained unchanged.

His jacket was a pale white while ripped jeans covered his legs, from his waist a long white sheath was visible holding back his katana, Revy knew well enough that inside the sleeves of that jacket were his daggers the 'white fangs'.

He had sprung up a little over a year ago quickly turning the town upside down and pressing it under his thumb, those that were smart conformed to his ways and lived happily, those that didn't simply vanished, in all honesty this would be her first time seeing King fight she couldn't help but feel a little excited at the thought.

Revy lead him to the boat without speaking much jumping up onto what he assumed was her boat, Naruto jumped up right behind her and found two guns pulled on him.

"Dutch, Benny relax, relax. This isn't someone to fight, he is our cargo."

"What the fuck has King gotten us into now?"

"Nothing much you are just transporting me to a location, after that you will be paid... I also didn't think that the jobs I gave you were _that_ much of a hassle," Naruto stated flatly causing the men to gulp quickly understanding who it was, "Don't try sucking up my arse, just get the job done, Revy has told me a great deal about you two... you do good work, keep it up and you keep getting paid... I care about results and loyalty that is it."

Revy waved the blonde down with a nervous glance at her teammates, "This way King... we will set you up in the cabin for the trip, sorry about the misunderstanding of course, I guess they were just a little trigger happy." A rather nervous chuckle coming from her mouth as she showed the blonde the way making sure he was comfortable before coming back up top, and glaring at her teammates, "You fucking idiots, with his say so our ship would be sunk before the engine even started to run. _This_ is his town now so keep your fucking mouths shout and show him we are of use!"

"You really got us caught up with some troublesome contacts Revy... but they always pay well, I say we keep working with him, possibly get in his books more often... keep up the good work and you won't hear many complaints from me," Dutch spoke cracking a beer and jumping down into the cabin, starting the engines and pulling the boat out, Revy ran a hand through her hair and sighed, it would be a long few hours.

Their boat was a custom model, not needing magic to be powered, it was built overseas but now they were transports of goods for King and Kakura. They had started off reasonably small time, now they, well Revy was looked after well, a few contacts that she could use as herself, her name had spread pretty far now and most tended to stay out of her way... a few fools still tried every now and again but not everyone can be saved.

Benny had sat down and tried to speak with Naruto for a few minutes only to leave the room quickly... he was a rather dark man and he had this strange aura around him, one that seemed to make their slightly less than sane gun girl feel safe.

She had taken to sitting inside of the cabin with him as the two talked about, nothing really. A loud knocking against the door caused Revy to jump up, "What's up?" She called hearing a small grunt from the other side.

"It seems like we are here Mr King. Would you like for us to hang around?" Dutch questioned as the door opened showing that Naruto in fact looked to be asleep again, he gave a small sigh and stood up throwing his jacket on and resting his katana on his shoulder still in its sheath.

"The choice is yours, I will be extra for you to take me back but there may be a few hours wait..." He mused as he walked out of the cabin and stood atop of the boat his eyes scanning the village around him, it was quaint maybe even homely to some, "Oh the mission was accomplished by the way... they are not here yet but they are close, good job, I will pay you when I return to Kakura. That isn't a problem is it Revy?"

"Nah, I know you are good for it, mind if I tag along though?" She questioned rocking on her toes, something about the man in front of her excited her, made her blood run hot.

Naruto rose a brow and chuckled, "Don't trust the rumours eh?"

"Rumours get people killed." She retorted quickly leaning forward with a smirk on her face.

"There is truth in your words... I see no harm, just keep up or stay with Kuraja," A magic circle appeared on his back letting his wings spread wide through his jacket.

Revy let her eyes widen as she pumped a fist into the air, "FUCK YEAH! THIS IS WHAT I AM TALKING ABOUT!" She started before quickly being thrown onto Kuraja and the group lifted into the air, Revy cheering all the way as they vanished out of sight.

"You see it too don't ya Dutch?"

"Yeah, a good soul tossed to the wolves time and time again... there is only so long we can be surrounded in darkness before we start to embrace it, you'll see in time Benny, this is someone we can trust," Dutch replied lighting a cigarette and cracking open his can of drink, "We should wait around, the extra cash could do good, not to mention it would be rude not to."

* * *

Her eyes were as wide as saucers, she had watched the white-haired siblings easily toss around this giant beast but that all changed in a moment, the male had moved forward just as the older female fell to the ground, some strange transformation coming undone, the male vanished and the beast started moving again heading to the younger sibling.

It's hand raised high and her grin widened she had been on a strike no killing rule while working under King... one of the few actually but right now she was about to see someone go splat, only it never happened, the beast had hit something but it was forced to stop.

Revy's head snapped to the side where Naruto had just been only to see nothing the blonde had cleared about 200 yards in the blink of an eye his sheathed blade was outstretched and was the reason the beasts arm had stopped, she watched as the white-haired girls stiffened at his appearance.

*Crack*

The beasts hand was flung away from Naruto as he flicked the hair out of his eyes. Bringing his hand up again he slashed his still sheathed blade at the beast knocking it to the side and out of his way.

"N-naruto? Is that you?" The older female questioned from her position on the ground, looking up hopefully.

The blonde turned on the spot and gave an animatistic smile with a small twinkle in his eyes, "Yeah... its been a while hasn't it Mira? Still getting your ass kicked by little Erza?"

Revy let out a small gasp, that white-haired bitch was crazy like more crazy than herself... to hear of someone stronger than her? But then again she just watched Naruto flick around the beast like he was a toy. "That tinned bitch ain't got nothing on me..." A small chuckle left her throat as tears slipped down her face, "Can you help us Naruto?"

"I guess I can, I just have to knock him out right? I mean that is Elfman in there I am tipping... figures he would jump the gun..." Naruto landed a hand on Lissana's head and ruffled her hair for a moment, "You keeping that boy of yours out of trouble Liss?"

"Thats right Naruto, and please be careful with him." Mira spoke quickly causing Naruto to let out a sigh, letting your emotion get involved was always sure to make a task more difficult.

"Natsu is fine Naruto-nii, but he really misses you... when are you coming back?" Spluttered the youngest of the siblings causing the blonde to sigh again as he walked forward, no intention of answering her question he rose his right hand into the air and used his left to put his blade back where it belong, a tight purple aura coating his hand a larger one forming in the air above him before he let it slam into the Elfman's skull knocking him to the ground he had just stood from.

It's body slowly turning back to the white-haired male he had grown a lot and stood at Naruto's height, the blonde figured in a few more years he would be taller, he walked forward and put the man over his shoulder carrying him back to his sisters and dumping him on the ground, "There are people in these lands that are the same as me... the level the guild is at now would allow for it to be crushed in an instant. Please rectify this... also Liss, I don't know if I will ever return but I shall keep watching out for you guys, so stay safe and get strong."

He flinched as he was quickly grabbed into a tight hug by the sisters, the group just sat there for some time it was like finally saying goodbye only no words were exchanged, they slowly parted and tried to laugh as they wiped away the tears that had flown out of their eyes... it was so strange to see the man that had brought them to their new family forced to become some outlaw, seeing him now they knew he wasn't what the reports made him out to be.

"I must be going... take it easy ok?"

"See you soon Naruto-kun/nii." The sisters replied quickly waving as he left and a purple flash appearing next to Revy who was still shocked by what had happened.

He walked up and softly flicked her forehead snapping her out of the daze she was in, "What the actual fuck are you?!"

"Tsk, I am what happens when humans try to play god, there are others like me but for now... it seems none of them have the balls to stand against their better, you ready to go Revy?" He questioned seeing her still shaking a little from what happened, it was to be understandable she didn't have a huge amount of experiences with strong mages then to get two strong ones right after one another, it must have shocked her a little.

"The rumours are nothing like seeing the real thing, I bet you could fucking rip his arms off like they were nothing, so fucking badass! Reckon you can cut a bullet in half?" A strong gleam in her eyes as she leaned a little too close into the blondes personal space, earing a small flick on the forehead.

"If you are trying to ask me for a spar some time, just come and speak it straight. If that is what you are asking, I guess I can entertain you some time, but for now your crew is going to be wanting to head back and collect their payment right?" His voice coating the air around him like velvet and strumming lightly against her drums causing her to nod happily.

"Fuck yeah! Lets get paid and then me and you can jump in the ring!"

"Bare knuckle and I won't use magic, just ask me to stop when you give up and you might just walk out with a little nip." His taunt coming out quickly and before he even noticed a small red hue crossed over her cheeks, his toothy grin not helping the situation at all.

Revy let out a small pour as she met his eyes, "Has anyone ever told you that you can be such a tease?"

"Yes... they sold me out, or at least the people they worked for did," He leaned in closely right next to her ear letting a small warm breath tickle it, "You wouldn't sell me out would you Revy?"

She bit down on her lip letting out a small trickle of blood running down the corner of her mouth, "I could almost jump you right now..."

Revy felt her weight shift and found her body pressed up against a tree behind her, one of Naruto's fangs trailing along her ear as their bodies were pressed against one another, "You didn't answer my question Revy~" His husky voice sent a shiver trailing down her spine as her legs wrapped around his waist looping behind his back and holding them together.

Her lips traced along the crook of his neck laying butterfly like kisses as her hands intertwined with his hair as her lips slowly made their way to his pausing to look into his eyes, "I-I couldn't, no not now, I've heard what you're doing, the war that's on the horizon," She spoke breathlessly slowly inching forward, " a lot of money to be made a lot of skulls to crack open, just tell me who to kill and its done."

"Any fool can kill... why do you think I ask you not to? Why do you think I don't draw my blade?"

"Tsk, you're a total buzz kill... but you do it to prove a point, you could have pulled your blade and cut through that man instead of knocking him out... bleeding him out until he passed out from loss of blood, it would have achieved the same result," She whispered letting her eyes roam over his face to see if she could spot his change in emotions.

Naruto gave a toothy grin and moved one of his hands to the side of her neck, stroking the lobe of her ear, "No. As I said any fool can kill, whether it is himself by moving the wrong way during a sword fight, or by signing up for something out of their league, or the real fools decide it would be fun to fuck with me... you aren't going to fuck with me are you... Revy?" His hand clenched a little as his thumb moved to her throat, it wasn't tight but she knew he could snap her neck at any moment, she shook her head lightly still staring into his eyes.

"I am not some knight who will sweep you off your feet, at the moment my body is shrouded in a never-ending darkness... yet its only from this place that we can really see how light the hidden path really is, when you are blind you see much _much_ more... but you, you still walk in the light, the shadow hangs on your back. What do you see Revy? What _can _you see?" He breathed calmly loosening his grip on her and giving a smile.

"You would reduce the land to ashes just to keep her safe wouldn't you?" Her answer was a small nod causing her to sigh, "WHY THE FUCK ARE THE GOOD ONES ALWAYS TAKEN!" She roared before crying into his shoulder. Why would he do all this? Cast himself into the darkness just to draw it away from another Why? He would make the entire world hate him just so she could stay safe... why? His eyes were caught only by her...why? What could she possibly have to offer him that herself could not? "Why?" She muttered clenching his jacket tightly, "Why the fuck would you go so far?!"

"Love... its such a strange emotion, capable of bringing a man to his knees or causing a war itself, it is something that not even the smartest people in the world can understand, yet at the same time it is the one thing everyone strives for... no matter how hard they try to deny it. I was an arse, treated her like crap hoping to get her to forget about the life we used to have... but still she stayed close trying to bring back what I once was, funny the man she wants back crashes his hands against the bars in my chest... desperately wanting to return to her to hold her close and whisper tender words into her ear, letting her know everything would be ok, that we could make it through... but I would gladly cast that all aside just to keep her safe."

He brought a hand up to his eye and wiped away the tears that had formed at the corner, when was the last time he had actually cried, a small chuckle left his lips as he moved back and stood Revy up ruffling her hair for a few seconds leaning forward and planting a quick kiss on her forehead, "Thanks Revy... it has been some time since a conversation has moved me so far, lets go I am sure your crew is still looking for that bonus."

Her eyes seemed defeated but she nodded slowly and walked beside him looking at her feet like they were the most interesting thing in the world, if she had of paid more attention she may have noticed Naruto crush a tree and the small rustling of leaves it left behind, maybe even the white-haired blur that dashed off into the night.

* * *

Her red hair flickered around in the wind, a long sword in her hand as she stood in her standard armour, two deep marking just like Naruto had around her eyes, only her were red just like her partner... it would seem like Naruto kept quiet a few secrets, he didn't get the markings from some stupid jellyfish, it was from making the bond between him and his familiar stronger.

A small 'tsk' left her mouth it was strange to think about it, that she would go so far just to bring him back. But just how far was she able to go before she collapsed... would she even be able to see his silhouette or would he become just another leaf in the wind, gently floating everywhere but never really taken notice of.

Where would she stand when everything was over, she couldn't get in contact with him, the only person who knew how to wouldn't speak to her he seemed to just up and vanish, always putting them to sleep when he came to the guild to collect a new mission, Laxus had turned back to being an arse and even Natsu and Gray had picked up on their training... he made such an impact by leaving did he even notice?

"Oi Erza!"

The knight had to repress the urge to growl, she was really in no mood to deal with her rival right now, "What do you want Mira?" She bit out actually using her name for a change.

"Guess who I ran into on my last mission?"

"Who your boyfriend?"

"Nope... yours... Naruto."

* * *

**PA: What do you think? I feel kind of iffy about it right now but I think over the next few chapters it will make much more sense... also yes that is the crew from Black Lagoon... minus 'Rock' because he really sucks until the third season. Lisanna was kept in earthland and Itachi made it through in the end, a war brewing behind the scenes of the happy mages, plus we got to see another Fallen, don't worry he will be much stronger the next time their paths cross, it won't be so one-sided.**


	6. Chapter 6

**PA: I am glad people liked the interaction between Revy and Naruto in the last chapter. Our blonde Slayer is still in the process of finding where he truly belongs, that's why his actions seem to drift from side to side without any real warning, I don't know if that came across clearly in my writing so I thought I would just pop it there for those that read my AN's.**

**Cerulean Knight: Yeah Itachi is Avian class while Naruto is of the Reptilia class. In one of the earlier chapters he did munch on a basilisk, it was the same chapter where Naruto first spread his wings. You don't need to worry, both Revy and Isabela will be big characters even if they don't seem so at the moment.**

**His katana is explained a bit more in this chapter, saying it is a cursed blade though is not too far from the truth. Will Naruto get better at fighting in the air? Maybe... I am not sure yet maybe that will be his fault.**

**BanefulWarrior: There is a reason for that, it will be brought to light later on though, but nice spot.**

**mellra: The Fallen-Slayers are like Juugo in a strange kind of way, as you saw Sasuke lost to his Fallen side and ended up turning into his class (Type of Fallen) because of it, while on the otherhand Naruto sits on the edge of the knife with his. The Familiars of the Fallen-Slayers are partners that assist with the gaining of mutations, for example how Kuraja injects Naruto with new toxins to make him more resilant.**

**Kurama is still with Erza and while he could just go 'Yeah Naruto is here and such' you gotta remember he refers to Erza by her name while Naruto is 'Master'.**

**And for all those that are wondering Sasuke is at the present time dead.**

**Disclaaimer: I own neither Naruto nor Fairy Tail.**

* * *

His fingers lightly strummed against the table as a large plume of smoke left his mouth, to his left was Revy, her feet were up on top of the table with her legs crossing over one another, in front of them was some fat businessman, a pristine suit costing more than most people made in a month, the year was X783 and the pieces on the board were moving fast, the bar he had taken over 'Midnight Maiden' had been 'upgraded' runes were used to stop anyone from using magic or weapons inside of it, resulting in only fist fights breaking out... that was good new for all, Isabela didn't have to worry about her workers getting hurt and Naruto didn't have to worry about fixing up any damages.

Once that change came in he decided to bring in more business to the place, with the guidance of its owner, now it had become a bar with exotic dancers filling the stage, its once wooden floors were now lined with carpet and marble... it had been a good year for Naruto's wallet.

But the person across from him was staring to get on his nerves, "I want the 'product' that's all, I don't care if your crew got killed off, I paid for it in advance just to get the task done, you have your money and _my_ item in your possession... now hand it over, or I will just take it by force."

Kuraja coiled up nicely resting his large head on the table next to Naruto's hand, with a tired sigh he stroked the snakes head affectionately, "Yes, if he doesn't come up with what he owes within the next hour, you can go on a manhunt Kuraja, maybe you should take Katra with you... she could do with the experience," The blonde mused as Revy lifted her hand from her shoulder, placing a rather large spider on the table, it seemed to look around for a few moments before stopping and looking at the man across from them baring its fangs and increasing its size, now it was about as large as a fully grown human chest.

The man visibly gulped as the spider sized him up, looking like he was her next meal, the super-sized black widow seemingly taking great pleasure in watching the man squirm, "Mistress?" Its voice was almost enchanting as it turned back to look at Revy, the purplette gave a small scoff as she lit her smoke and threw her head back.

"King said he has an hour to come up with the item, we shall give him that hour. After that you can have your way with him," She let an eye wander to the right to look across at Naruto who let out a large cloud of smoke, waving his hand gently in front of him, guiding it over to her as she took a deep breath sucking it all in like a vacuum.

"Mr Glory, your time has started, I _will_ get what I want either way... the only thing that will change is how much pain you go through for this to happen," The cold tone of Naruto caused the man to stiffen before nodding and leaving down the stairs... Naruto still enjoyed having the top floor to himself being able to look over the small club he had created, "Vulco?"

"Already on it boss, you want his person on lockdown right?"

"Correct..."

"Five more minutes and he won't be able to leave the city," Vulco smirked under his shaggy hair, part of him really enjoyed being able to feel what it was like to be King, even if it was only for a moment. His every word was law in Kakura.

Naruto stood and took a few small steps towards the edge of the balcony, looking down on the floor beneath him with a smile, "Good work Vulco, as always you have performed above what I asked for," Kuraja dropped an envelope on the table, it was clear who it was for and Vulco walked forward slowly taking the payment, he had become one of the King's generals it was a good spot to be in, the money was good and the power was almost addictive.

"You don't need to worry Revy, I will get that Grimoire for you, I can't have my dragon running around without knowing much of her magic now can I?"

Her cigarette had been long finished and she merely let a smile spread across her face as a wispy trail of smoke drifted from her mouth hanging around just in front of it, her interest in magic had increased over the past year and now she felt the need to study the arts much like Naruto himself did, one day he called her away saying he had a 'gift' for her... it would seem that blonde had been able to get his hands on a lacrima with a dragon soul stuck inside of it, the ash dragon, it is said that it's very steps left smoke trailing behind it, burning away at the ground and slowly turning it to ash for its next feast.

A little known fact that the duo had found was that she could eat smoke just as much as she could ash to make her energy fill back up... just like Naruto could refill his by draining the magic from what he was eating. It was Revy's secondary form of magic, she had quickly taken up gun magic finding it very fitting to her person and getting a nice firm grasp on the subject, when Naruto offered her the power to be able to learn magic of the dragons... creatures she had just thought to be legends from a time of old, how was she to say no?

It had hurt like crazy going in, the pain had stuck around for a few days after. Apparently that had to do with turning her into some sort of Dragon/Human hybrid, at first she had been frantic thinking she was going to grow scales or something, her ranting and raving was put to rest when Naruto gave a small chuckle, "I am a hybrid myself, I have known other ones as well, all of us look human unless we delve deep into our power... normally you can return without any side affects," His words had eased her greatly and when the procedure was completed she never left his side, even when the strange spider had appeared and started to call her 'Mistress'.

Revy moved to stand next to Naruto, both looking at the club below them, the purplette already knew she was to take his throne if something ever happened to him. She had already been told such and knew she was to be groomed for the position, having already made a name for herself made it somewhat easier, to shift into the position of strength.

'The Eastern Dragon', had become known through the ports and nearly as feared as the 'Fallen King', at times people even called her the King's Blade, but neither of them seemed to mind, Naruto's fingers had even managed to land in the pockets of politicians quickly pulling them to his grasp, he was _really_ good in what he set his mind to.

"Humanity still has not learnt... all of its acts of overcoming corruption are pious, feeble attempts that are made out of desperation... just like how they cling to religion in order to try and make amends for what they believe 'god commanded'. Purging nations then hiding behind someone elses name only rings cowardice in my ears... don't you believe so Revy?" Naruto mused exhaling deeply as he watched the people dance, pay for drinks and to be danced upon, gluttony and lust filled monkeys the lot of them, yet it always made a nice meal for his wallet.

She watched a man quickly get knocked out for insulting one of the workers, it was one of the grunts that she had hired a few days ago that knocked the man out, quickly dealing with the idiot from outside their 'circle', "I believe that..." She paused taking in the situation again, she had been forced to learn quickly under Naruto and never make a half guess, "the longer they continue this path, the more _we_ reign. By that I mean the shadows profit, eventually swallowing more and more until we have had our fill."

Naruto closed his eyes for a moment, putting out his conversation smoke and picking up a pre chopped cigar, with a click of her fingers and a small gray magic circle appearing Revy lit the brown stick, superheating her smoke and giving it a woody taste to go along with the tobacco smoke, Naruto always did enjoy the taste of them better when they were lit with her magic, he mused inwardly before letting out a deep breath and scratching at his chin, "A careful observation, Kuraja himself is rather pleased, but Revy... how do you stop rats from sneaking in and selling faulty product inside of our club, every so often a death occurs because of such things and I have to smooth it over, if you were placed in the situation, how would you handle it?"

He was talking about the drugs that were sold in the club, that much was clear and now that this new information was brought to light, something she hadn't heard of before, she narrowed her eyes dangerously, "Personally I would tear them limb from limb for endangering and disregarding the clear rules in place to keep this place safe, but that would draw attention... for a time you could speak to those that serve directly under you and offer a reward for any confiscated product that was brought inside... though that could in turn lead to more people trying to sneak it in to get the reward. That would be the best choice of option in the short term, maybe shifting your strategies a few months later once things cleaned up... I would place some magi with searching magic, sending periodic pulses out as a scan, searching anything that would be classed as 'suspicious'. How would you handle it?"

Her plant was well thought out and caused him to nod in thought, "I would look at acquiring trained familiars to rest on the workers as they went about their business, sniffing for any product on the floor. As you already know ours must be consumed upon purchase and in the vision of a server. While it would be costly it would also give our workers better protection... that is what I would do, solve two problems at once," He waved his hand out wide an a thin purple powder spread over the room, lighting up like a christmas tree on some people, "Boys... those that are alight carry something I haven't permitted... please relieve it from them, make sure you 'encourage' them not to commit such an act against me again yes?" Naruto called from his position making thugs all around the room stand from their seats and cheer in response.

"Hai!" It was fast, a quick clean out of any that stood against him.

Naruto turned to face Revy with a small smile on his face, "Or... I can send a very strong message allowing me time to think of a stronger plan of action."

The purplette nodded and looked over the crowd again watching 'their' men quickly take care of the issue, he was right when he spoke to Dutch last year, all he cared about were results and loyalty. It showed just that in the way the men worked under him. She was pretty sure he could ask them to kill one another and they would do just that from fear of being struck down otherwise, "Not always will time be on our side though correct?"

"Correct, it is a gamble that can quickly backfire if you lose... that is why you make sure it is neigh impossible to lose... time changes often and is something that no man should have control over, merely we use it when possible for our own gain... remember this Revy."

Those words always meant that there was an important lesson in what he had just spoken or done, she had taken up his offer for a spar... his speed and strength was something she could not simply wrap her mind around, but she learnt quickly, sadly because of how she was now training she had very little time to work with her old crew so now she just handed them simple jobs, when she could of course.

* * *

Her hands tightly around her blade as Kurama scaled quickly along her arms striking out as she did, her balance was now perfect, able to adjust within a fraction of a second to the weight of her familiar's strike, this was 'Titania' queen of the fairies, S-class mage of Fairy Tail, currently she was practising, never thinking her strength was enough, mostly because her partner still would not contact the one person in the world she wanted to speak to... that troublesome blonde that just seemed to vanish into thin air.

The amount of times she had been close enough to catch his scent only for him to disappear the next second were crushing, she like a few other high-ranking mages had heard of the name King, she was sure it was Naruto... afterall he was the only one she could think of that would use a stupid name like that.

But it scared her that such a man could be the blonde she used to know, her spare time now was often spent trying to either find him, or get the strength to bring him back. This had lead her to a rather strange sector in the rebuilt Hargeon town, it was a bar called the 'Devil's Maiden' the tenders had this large shit eating grin split across their face the moment she stepped in putting her on edge.

The owner of the place went by the name of Anko, practically hanging from her shoulders was an incredibly sexy raven-haired woman who later came to be known as Kurenai, both seemed incredibly fascinated with her, apparently they knew quite a bit about the scarlet mage.

The final nail plunged deep into the coffin as a large red snake crept around and cuddled up with Kurama, apparently it was his mother telling her that these people at least knew of the blonde, when she prodded they had been incredibly generic with their answers leading to only a further increase in frustrations.

Not to mention when the one known to be Kurenai started teaching her how to dress... apparently she didn't show off _enough_ skin to make men interested... reluctantly she let Kurenai have her way with her.

She ended her small quest with more irritation than she had started with, this in turn caused the guild to be on the receiving end of her 'counseling' to become better mages.

Part of her felt like things had changed since Naruto had to leave, another smaller voice seemed to lurk around though, telling her it would always be the same, it was just like when he was with the guild, only he doesn't show up at all... at least not to her.

Apparently a few members of the guild had seen him, always during times where it would mean their death. For some time she thought about purposely throwing herself in harms way to see if he would appear to whisk her away to a place of haven again... quickly she struck that thought, that was not the way she wanted to see the blonde again.

Storing her blades away in her personal dimension she gave a heavy sigh, still she was not even close to being where Naruto had been when he left the guild, not to mention what he had become now, rolling her shoulders forward Erza walked out of the training grounds, heading back into the guild and storming up to the S-class board.

Her eyes quickly skimmed the board for a moment before finding the 'perfect' request. Taking it in her hands she bounded down the stairs and slammed it on the counter next to Makarov causing him to nearly spill his beer in fright, thankfully it was all caught back in the mug followed by an incredibly quick "A real man never spills his drink!" from across the room.

A giddy smile on his face as he looked at the request his eyes narrowing slightly, "You want to team up with the Saints?" He mused out loud, the request was for Naruto, they figured he would still receive it via Fairy Tail.

"Hai Master, it would be the best chance I have to see where my skills lay with those _near_ his level," Erza replied with certainty, causing a few to raise their brows while Mira gave a small chuckle, trust the redhead to keep pushing herself so hard.

Maybe she just needed a little more ne? "Tincan you wouldn't even be able to keep up, you sure you can complete the request?" The snide remark hit its target, Erza's fists clenching tight as she whipped around and glared hard at Mira.

"Skank. This request will be almost as easy as you!" The retort seemed to freeze everyone in the room, even Mira not expecting her to bite back so hard. With a huff she got the request signed and left storming out of the guild.

* * *

Two days passed since the scarlet mage had picked up the request, when her feet landed in the city she felt something was off, it was much too quiet for a normal town, Kakura... she had heard this was the hotspot from criminals of all kinds yet she hadn't seen a single one.

Looking at the request again she frowned, apparently she had reached the meeting place, it was not in her taste, a tired sigh escaped her mouth as she entered "WILD!" was called from somewhere inside the establishment, causing a few heads to turn in confusion.

"Bacchus-dono could you please calm yourself?"

Well that answered her question, she was definitely in the right place, gently she pushed through the crowd making her way upstairs only to freeze at the sight she saw, "You really shouldn't have taken a request that was meant for myself Erza... but it is nice to see you again."

That voice, like always it managed to send a warm feeling through her body, he had changed so much. His exposed chest was almost to much of a tease for her to handle, the subtle way his muscles seemed to ripple as he moved, "I actually expected a bit more from her, the little bitch doesn't seem like much."

Erza turned to face the new voice, meeting a purplette... honestly she was rather tired of them, always showing up and getting in between her and Naruto. Revy being who she is knew rather little restraint... no matter how much Naruto had drilled the lesson into her skull, "I think I could take her, maybe bend 'er over and give out a spanking too, who knows... maybe she'll like it eh King?"

"Maybe you could take her... maybe Erza would wipe the floor with you, we wont find out tonight though correct?" Naruto's tone seemed to come out so smoothly, as if he was asking just a simple question not giving an order.

Revy gave a small sigh and leant back kicking her feet up onto the table and grabbing her beer raising it and striking it against the one in Bacchus' hands, "You really do need to have a bit more fun King, I mean what's the point of all of you gathering in one spot if you ain't going to knock a few skulls together ne?"

A tired sigh left the blondes mouth as he took of his jacket, quickly peering over the side and glancing down at the patrons below, "Because I am not the one that called us all together, a mission was handed out for our generation of the Saints... so it looks like I have to be on my best behaviour at the moment, don't worry I won't bite...hard."

"WILD, you haven't changed much have ya Blondie?"

"Naruto has changed a fair bit Bacchus-dono," Jura stated before turning to face Erza with a small frown on his face "Erza-dono, maybe it would be best if you went home, this is not exactly something you should be a part of."

"You are Jura correct?" Erza questioned the bald man making sure she had the others around the right way, getting a small nod she let out an internal sigh of relief, "I am going to continue on, as a member of Fairy Tail we always see things through to the end."

Naruto caught the small little jab towards him, whether she said it on purpose or not remained to be seen, "Well its a good thing that I am not a member of Fairy Tail right now, cause yourself and Revy will be taking my position... try not to kill one another, for me ok Revs?"

Erza frowned not liking the outcome for more than a single reason, it was in fact Revy who spoke up though "And where are you going to be King?"

"Oh... I believe I still of Bela a ship... that was uh, a bad week?" Naruto chuckled out sheepishly before placing some keys on the table, "Feel free to drink till you drop, they are on me. Plus I have already taken the liberty of booking three separate lodgings for our guests," Seeing the risen brows he got from Erza caused him to sigh a little, "if you paid more attention to Anko and Kurenai, you would have learnt that this town is run by myself... I know everyone that enters and everyone that leave, Titania."

The Fairy Queen's eyes widened a little as he walked down the stairs leaving his coat behind, a large purple snake trailing behind him before crawling up his legs and shrinking to hang around his shoulders.

"Looks like we are going to be working together Tin bitch, names Revy... or the Eastern Dragon, which ever makes you feel better about yourself," The purplette spoke in an offhanded way, trying to push the little Erza closer to the edge, "I am King's apprentice of sorts, so don't get in my way okay princess?"

Erza clenched her fists tightly nearly drawing blood from them, her teeth gritted along one another for a few moments, watching was Revy quickly descended down the stairs, "Later bitch, try not to keep the group waiting in the morning!"

"Erza-dono, her attitude is rather undesirable but Naruto has already briefed us on what she is able to do... part of me thinks she would be taking this mission the entire time... or maybe his plans changed when you got involved, I shall retreat to my accommodations for the night, shall we meet out the front of this place in the morning?" Jura spoke once Revy was far enough away, never noticing the little spider that hung suspended above the group... she had been learning much more than just magic from Naruto.

Erza was barely holding back the tantrum she wanted to throw, how could he just act so cold when they were so close? Had he really closed himself off from everyone? Not to mention he didn't even pause to give her time to speak, never giving her the chance to say what she really wanted.

* * *

The makeshift group of four had finished their mission promptly, both Bacchus and Jura coming out unharmed, the request was dealing with a branch of dark mages, sure they were pretty highly ranked but that proved to be nothing compared to the power of two wizard saints, Naruto would have found the entire thing boring beyond reason.

Erza and Revy handled it rather easily, making it a contest of sorts to see who could do the best...it ended in a tie, both of them coming away with a few scrapes and bruises.

Each sporting a glare that was quickly turned to a look of shock as the took in the sight before them, they had all decided to head back to the club to catch up and have a few drinks, they were instead greeted by the sight of a giant white ship pulling into the docks in front of the place they were heading.

"No fucking way, he actually found that thing?!" Roared the purplette in question causing more than her group to look at her in question, "That ship is called the Unyielding Maiden... said to be lost at sea more than two hundred years ago. The unsinkable ship..." She murmured almost walking forward in a trance her hand stretching out in front of her face.

"Skank where are you going? we still have to settle this!"

"Shut up metal-tits. I have some shit to clear up before I do anything... I'll see you guys back at the club." Her legs buckled down before pushing off the ground with a force she hadn't shown before, practically soaring through the air and landing on the deck of the boat that had everyone's attention.

Naruto didn't even raise a brow as he dropped the anchors, he felt her land on the boat, a smile spreading over his face, completing his task he gave a small sigh, "You wouldn't believe it, sitting in the middle of some island surrounded by some crazy ass sea-monster, but I found her... I think a ship like this will have Bela owing me again, after all not even you could sink this boat... trust me I tired," He chuckled nervously for a moment, his features slowly turning back into his serious demeanor, "so how was the request?"

"Your training was harder, tincan... I mean Erza, what do you see in her... I spent the mission trying to figure it out but I kept drawing a blank," Her head hung low looking at her feet, almost like she couldn't bare to look at him right now, already guessing that his face would be in one of two positions, questioning or disappointed.

A thoughtful look was on the blondes face instead as he stroked at his chin for a few moments, "I guess it would be hard for others to understand. I can't exactly understand it myself... but everything about her sends me crazy, she will sit there and try to understand what I am attempting to say behind my strange wording, this look on her face that is neigh impossible to resist. If you knock her down in a spar you can expect her to get up, a fierce look present in her eyes like a predator staring down her prey."

"So? Anyone can be stubborn, it doesn't make them special ya know?" Revy blurted out looking up with anger in her eyes causing the blonde to sigh.

The sun slowly setting behind him and bathing him in its light, bringing out each in his topless form, causing her lips to tremble, "I already told you Revy... that's just how it is, I've already tried to change it, spent years doing so and now I have giving up trying to sway my heart away." He moved to the railing and jumped up softly looking at the people filtering into the streets to begin the night life.

"What have you done to the man I used to know? The cold ruthless bastard that didn't give two shits about all this crap?!"

Naruto rose a brow at her for a moment, letting his lips slowly pull up into a toothy smile, "Oh, I'm still here... it just depends on the situation."

"What about the shit that's been going on between you and Pirate Bitch?"

The remark caused Naruto to raise a brow for a moment, "You mean Isabela?" He quickly received a nod as his answer, "We are partners of a sort, she scratches my back and I scratch hers... nothing more too it really."

Revy seemed to question him with her eyes for a moment before sighing, Naruto took that as his cue and dropped from the railings to the docks below, his feet quickly scuffing against the gritty ground, quickly moving past the shocked civilians and heading into his club, a strange orb hanging from a chain dangled from his fingers, with grace he moved through the crowds making his way behind the bar and sneaking up on the tender.

Quietly resting a hand on her shoulder and causing her to jump in fright, he gave a small chuckle as she pulled a harsh glare on him, slowly turning it to a smile, "Back already? Did you find what you were looking for?"

"Yeah, it wasn't too far away, anything interesting happen while I was gone?" A smile spread wide across his face, as he questioned her watching the thoughtful expression pass over her.

"Nothing worthy of mention, no there was this one thing, a cute blonde man came into our club, definitely _the_ finest thing of the night. He came to take things in his own hands so to say. He seemed to be one of those men that you just can't forget about," She spoke softly taking a small step forward and poking at his chest.

"Ah did he just, well I shall have to thank him ne? Also I have a present for you after work... come see me upstairs when you're ready to close up. I'll be waiting..." He trailed off walking away and leaving the darker skinned woman in shock, hardly ever did he give people things out of 'kindness' now she quickly puzzled over what he had said, trying quickly to figure out what he had planed.

* * *

Naruto had his legs up on the table, Kuraja shrunken down and resting on his lap curled around his partners katana. The blondes head was back, eyes closed letting the music beat against his eardrums, measuring everything around him with his Fallen eye, the ultimate test for his fighting style, the ability to heighten all of his senses to the point that mental visualisation of his surroundings occurred.

The music slowly started to die down and those on the floor with him slowly filtered out leaving him alone, Those that had been here for the mission earlier, the Saints, Erza and Revy had already drunk their fill and had seemed to glance right over him as if he never existed, he loved his ability to turn invisible and the rule that no one but him was allowed to sit here. He had taken notice of the almost frantic why in which Erza was looking for him, along with the disheartened facial expression she carried as the Scarlet mage had left that night.

Not a single question was asked of him, none tried to speak to him, he was just left alone to his thoughts, and the pesky memories that wouldn't leave his mind. A slight breeze shifted the air around him, "Should you be using your magic so carelessly Bela?"

"Says the one currently abusing his own? Also what have I told you about calling me Bela?" She tried to bite out in a stern voice only for it to turn into a giggle when the blonde unveiled himself, a large smile spread over his face as Kuraja slithered up and presented his head for a pat, one which Isabela gladly gave making sure to be proper and bend over to do so, showing off a rather sizeable bust from her actions, "You said you had something for me?"

Naruto held up one of his hands, the orb from earlier still hanging from its chain off of the tip of his finger, he rose a brow to her, "Do you know what this is Bela?" He took great pleasure in seeing the small twitch in her eyebrow, the stiff biting of her lip to stop herself from speaking out and the slow but sure shake of her head.

"No, but I doubt you called me here for something like this."

"You would be correct... this is a special, key, if you will, to your new ship... she is waiting outside, take this and you will be seen as its third master... the first was not so lucky, and I forcibly tamed her to obey me," He extended his hand further and dangled it in front of her face watching her eyes shift from side to side.

"Whats the catch?"

"I owed you a boat... I kind of blew up your last one and we were forced to take over this bar to get some money under our belts, we have been even for some time but I always felt that I owed you because of our first encounter."

"I already forgave you for that Baka, after seeing what you were able to do, not to mention the amount you are paying me for a rather simple job, we are even. Well _were_ even," A thought suddenly crossed her mind, what kind of ship could recognise someone as its master? "Just what kind of ship did you acquire?"

Naruto stood and donned the coat that had been resting on the back of his chair, his snake partner quickly slithering up and resting across his shoulders, the pristine sheathed blade hanging from his waist. It all happened faster than you could blink, the only sign he had moved at all and it was not just him appearing like that was the small sway that his braid and the orb held.

"You should just follow Bela, talking much more would just waste our time... something I do not exactly find comfort in," The blonde stated coldly as he moved towards the stairs the subtle clink of metal striking against another source of metal ringing through the air softly, it came from the chains that held his blade in its sheath, the blade was special only being able to be 'unlocked' by someone like Naruto... but not even the blonde was confident enough to do such a thing.

The supposed demonic blade is said to carry immense and corrupting power in its steel. The steel of the blade had the power to suck the very life out of what it struck sending it back into whoever was able to bear its taint.

She had seen the looks Naruto would give the blade, there was not much trust between the two, it could be described as a paper-thin chain, in fact it was like the blonde loathed the blade, only keeping it with him to avoid it falling into the hands of others.

The more she thought about it, the more likely that possibility seemed. The blonde may have been mysterious but one thing she was sure of, was his need to help others, this showed up time and time again... even staying true when he started to doubt himself.

Quickly shaking her thoughts away she bounded down the stairs following after the blonde, he was enchanting in a way, the way he moved left no room for wasted energy, he was so perfect in nearly everything he did... it was safe to say she had become quite fond of him.

These thoughts were tossed aside though as they made their way outside, a large cigar hanging out of the blondes mouth as her eyes went wide as she slowly moved forward her hand stretched out to the white boat, "Y-you found it?"

"Hai, plus it lives up to its reputation, the unsinkable ship. Already tested that for you."

"The ship made from bones of the first dragons... said to be lost in time, h-how?"

"That doesn't really matter Bela. So... do you like the present?" He chuckled out after he questioned taking the cigar out of his mouth and taking a deep breath of air only to have it cut off, two arms wrapped around his neck as her lips clamped down over his, Kuraja seemed to have seen what was going to happen as he was now on the ground as the pirate's legs swung up and tightly held onto the blondes waist.

Her hands moving to run through his hair and grip tightly, slowly she pulled away and looked into his eyes, her lust was clear, "Fuck me. Take me on the deck, _please!_"

"Bela..." He trailed a frown quickly sweeping across his face.

A finger softly found its way to his lips, "You're leaving soon, I already know that. You have been in such a rush to get things done lately like you are cleaning things up for Revy to take over... I want to have one final tumble, to say goodbye."

Naruto inwardly grimaced recalling just how this had come around, it had been just after he had destroyed her boat. The pair had gone to drink, they were on the blonde and he spent the majority of the night apologising, it had been a mistake created by too much alcohol, shaky emotions and rampaging hormones from the two teens.

That wouldn't be the last time either, the duo had tumbled many times to help relieve stress and bring their heads out of the clouds again, that's all it was to the blonde though. Isabela on the other hand started to become attached to the blonde, often finding small ways to get him alone just so they could talk, also she kind of enjoyed how he always called him Bela, even if she outwardly stated against it... it gave her this small amount of warmth whenever he called her Bela.

"I, I thought we were past this?"

"Naruto... one last time, after this we go our separate ways, let me by your sheath one last time." She pleaded looking deeply into his blue eyes, seeing a sudden look of resignation come over his face, it broke her apart inside knowing that she would never hold that place in his heart.

"Tsk, troublesome woman..." He breathed out in a husky voice causing Isabela's more negative thoughts to wash away in that single moment, her arms tightening around the blonde as he shifted his feet striking against bone now. Her legs could feel his movements as they walked across the ship, her mouth had already claimed his again her eyes closed putting all of her faith into the blonde.

She felt his hands slowly trail down to her firm behind to hold her in place as he opened a door, his feet moving again before he lay her gently on the bed, "This isn't the deck?" She questioned lustfully reaching up and taking the coat from his shoulders and hanging it over the end of the bed.

Naruto moved in and playfully bit the bottom of her ear, "Its the captain's cabin," His breath sending tingles down her spine as she pushed her hips closer raising her arms over her head as Naruto backed away, helping to rid her of her white top and blue sash.

Isabela's legs coming untangled from the blondes back showing her long leather boots and black panties off to the world, Naruto still having his bottom half covered gave a small grunt and thrusted forward with his pelvis letting her feel his rock-hard member.

"Mmm, let me help you sheath that sword... naughty boy."

* * *

She had slept with a smile that night. Said smile was only disturbed when the sense of warmth next to her moved away much to her protest, slowly drawing her from her sleep. With lethargic movements she rose to a seated position, seeing the blonde that held a place in her heart moving about the room and getting dressed again.

"I'm sorry for waking you, but I remembered that I promised to help an old friend with something... its about time I kept my word." Naruto spoke without even turning around, zipping his pants up and giving a small sigh as he picked up his blade, his fingers twitching on its hilt.

Isabela slowly nodded in understanding feeling the pang in her heart, she would give anything to have Naruto come with her when she left port, "I understand... you always were a softy at heart weren't you?" She questioned giving a sigh at the end.

"Tsk, first time I have had you complain about me being soft."

The joke passed quickly between the two as they shared a laugh, the pirate getting out of bed and getting dressed, the long white coat hung over her arms as she held it out to the blonde, "You're forgetting something Naruto."

Naruto looked at it for a moment raising his brow in question, "No... not really, the coat is a symbol for the leader of this town. I am walking away... the coat belongs to the dragon now, the fallen shall move to strike again."

"I'll let her know... thank you Naruto... for everything, we'll see each other again right?"

"I would put money on that Bela, look after yourself and thank you for passing on the mantle." Naruto gave her his toothy grin and opened the door putting his hand out and watching as Kuraja dropped down onto it and slither up to sit around his shoulders. His chains jingling a little as he vanished into the early morning mist.

Isabela looked down at the coat in her arms with a smile on her face, she knew now that they would meet again... Naruto always kept his word after all... it was just how much time would pass before that happened, "I'll see you soon 'Fallen King' Naruto, I hope you finally fill that void."

* * *

**PA: While this is shorter than I would have liked it was the best place to end the chapter, I actually cut off a lump at the end which was the introduction to the next arc. So for now you just have to suffer a little longer, till next time:D**


	7. Cannon Start

**PA: We are back, my Aprils Fool joke is actually on myself, I was up all night writing this chapter and Black Knight so I could post them today(Remember I am from Australia). Anyway, this chapter may seem a little rushed but that is mostly how I wanted it come out, time is quickly escaping our blonde and there is only so much he can do... plus Galuna Island was something I didn't want to write... mostly because I found it boring as hell when I watched it and secondly because I would of had to make him run into Ultear or you would have all been disappointed. Plus the Tower of Heaven arc... fuck that is going to be huge trust me.**

**Unnatural Reader: The sword is important, but the easiest way to think of it is like a legendary blade, like one of the Seven Swords from Kirigakure in Naruto.**

**Cerulean Knight: The Edolas arc... I am going to have a lot of fun there... lets just leave it at that for now. Revy is the Ash Dragon Slayer, she is artificial though like Laxus. Godzilla is a reptile and maybe he will be involved in an omake, but I don't want to have him in all of my fics... is it wrong for me to refer to Godzilla as a he btw I am not quite sure on that?**

**Zomvee: Ta for the support but I am wondering which quote you are talking about?**

**Hollow Flash: I have though about a ton of different things I could get him to eat, some are on the list and others had to be removed from it due to either being to hard to find a way to put them in or just not really working. Yes a dragon will be consumed at some point during the story, not exactly telling when though:P**

**hellfire45: Sorry man this is a strictly Narza (Naruto x Erza... It probably sounded much cooler in my head) fic. I have a few too many harem stories that need rewrites because I tried to include everyone.**

**Disclaimer: I own neither Naruto nor Fairy Tail... If I did there would deffs be discussions of a crossover series.**

* * *

Natsu Dragneel, A-rank mage of Fairy Tail was sickly pale as the train hissed to a stop causing his partner to shiver. Recent memories of a cat hunt were brought to the forefront of the Exceed's mind, "N-natsu lets go!" Exclaimed the shivering exceed trying to push his partner into action, the rose-haired slayer slowly picked himself up and groggily made his way from the train, a large frown on his face as the world seemed to slowly stop spinning. He adjusted his traveling back, which consisted of a bedroll and backpack and gave a small tug on his open best.

"Come on Happy, the note said _he_ was in this town." The pinkette seemed happier now and had a bit of a spring in his step as he started searching up and down.

"Should we really be looking for him alone? Why couldn't we bring Lissana or anyone really?" Happy had not had a good time with Kurama lately, now he was fretting over the thought of meeting the snakes father again.

Natsu gave a small shrug, "We can do this Happy, stop being so scar-" He froze as he heard whispers of a large snake in nearby bar, a smile coming onto his face, he made sure Happy was secured on his shoulders before tearing through the streets, causing quite the ruckus in his question... all pointed to one place, 'Devil's Maiden'.

He came to where all the dots connected, it had large steel doors and while it was in the centre of the dock district it was in immaculate condition, its brick work was well down and showed to be three stories tall. With a heavy push the doors creaked open and he was filled with the sight of strong mages all just sitting around drinking.

He spied Mystogan, some bald man and a larger man who was sinking drinks faster than Cana, those three were sitting with some hooded figure who started to draw Natsu's attention there was just something about him, his hand slowly raised into the air and waved for Natsu to come over which he did, receiving a quick nod from Mystogan and Jura, a more intense stare from Bacchus who gave up shortly after and went back to doing what he did best while the hooded figure started at him, or at least in his direction for sometime longer.

"You have grown quite a bit Natsu." The hooded man called out as the rosey teen sat down across from him, taking a deep sniff of the air.

A frown quickly passed over Natsu's face, he couldn't remember having ever smelt this scent before, "Do I know you?"

His hands raised up and pulled the hood back showing his blonde hair and serpent like blue eyes, he gave a toothy smile showing off his fangs, "I changed my scent in order to help keep trackers off of my back."

Natsu let his eyes widen in surprise before grinning wildly, "NARUTO! Lets go back to the guild, come on everyone has forgotten about what happened now."

Naruto saw how the boy had leapt into the air in excitement, it would seem he was still the same old Natsu, with a sigh he shook his head, "I can not... I called you here because someone is using your name to lure woman into the slave trade... he is tarnishing the name of Salamander and Fairy Tail... you really should do something about that." The blonde mused with a grin on his face as Natsu's brow ticked.

"Bastard... fine but after that I am going to come back and fight you, if I win you come back to the guild."

"Fine, if I win you owe me a favour."

Naruto extended his hand forward and Natsu did the same, both gave a solid shake, "Also can you tell Happy to stop shaking so much, it is putting Kuraja on edge... he gets hungry when he is on edge..." Naruto trailed off watching as the Exceed froze on the spot, stiff as a statue.

Natsu turned on his feet and picked up Happy on the way out, giving a final look back to Naruto as he pushed the doors open, "A man keeps his word."

Naruto looked blankly at where the pinkette had been, trying to piece together what he meant. He heard that Erza had become a 'Queen' is that what Natsu was referring too? Would she really tell people about that?

It didn't matter that much though as the teen was gone, Naruto rested his head against the table, his group were the only males in the bar and were getting quite a few hungry looks, Naruto chuckled nervously but made no further action, he was tired of always being on the run.

* * *

It felt weird for Natsu, he was chasing someone using his title, so in a way he was asking questions about himself to the civilians of the port town, after an hour of running around he finally had a decent lead that lead him to a courtyard.

Really if he had of been smart he would have just followed the people screaming for Salamander-sama, what he saw had not been what he had been expecting, a crowd of woman surrounded the man all cheering for him, Natsu pushed his way through ignoring the really crappy cape the man wore.

"Who do you think you are?" Natsu questioned with clenched fists causing the man to look at him in question, his dark hair styled like he was part of some boy band.

With a risen brow he waved a hand in front of his face, "If I was to say Salamander would you know who that is?"

A few moments passed between the two, "Funny... I was pretty sure _I_ was Salamander..."

The crowd around them seemed to look at the two confused, the hearts that had previously been in their eyes slowly breaking apart, "So kid you are just some kind of imposter eh?" The 'Fake' bit out gravely while Natsu coated his fists in fire.

**"Iron Fist of the Fire Dragon!" **A sharp uppercut struck the man in the jaw knocking him into the air and causing him to fly for a few moments before finally falling back down.

The fake stumbled up to his legs for a few moments, his eyes wide with disbelief, "Who dares lay a hand on Fairy Tail's Salamander?"

Natsu took his traveling coat off, letting the wind blow it away to the blue cat who caught it with a wide smile, his red guild mark showing proudly on his shoulder, "I can't let you tarnish my guilds name... let alone let you do so while using my own name... I am Natsu Dragneel... Fairy Tail's Salamander!" He roared bringing his hands up to his mouth to form a cone, **"Roar of the Fire Dragon!"**

A bright cone of flames left his mouth and blasted the imposter back into the wall behind him, his clothes being burn off in the process, with a wicked grin he wiped at the corner of his mouth, slowly stopping to look at the people around him. The Rune Knights appearing a few moments later from heaven's knows where and asking questions.

A busty blonde girl walked forward and pointed a finger right at Natsu, "He broke some charm magic that the knocked out man was using!"

To everyone's surprise they walked forward and shook the young dragon slayer's hand offering a brief thanks and walking off with the fake Salamander in tow... a small bounty having been placed in Natsu's hand.

He looked up to the blonde to see a bright smile on her face and her arms behind her back, "You said you're a part of Fairy Tail right?"

"Hai, you aren't being someone your not as well are you?" He questioned nervously only to give a sigh of relief when she shook her head.

"N-no, I was just wondering what I needed to do to get into a guild like Fairy Tail... see I am a mage as well!" She proclaimed causing his eyes to widen for a moment.

He was about to respond when he felt a hand gently land on his shoulder with its arm hanging around the back of his neck, a white cloak fluttering forward in the wind as the figures legs struck the ground, "You should take her to see your master... celestial mages are quite rare after all."

Natsu grit his teeth hard and shook the arm from his shoulders, "Fight me!"

"Tsk, come back to where we spoke, bring your new friend too, this city is a place you can get swallowed up in if you aren't careful." Naruto stated calmly as he vanished in the wind, like he was never there to begin with.

The pinkette gave a sigh but put his hand forward, "The name is Natsu, what's yours?"

"L-lucy... and who was that?"

"Oh, that was an old friend, I am still trying to convince him to come back to the Guild so I have to fight him and win!" He proclaimed putting his fist up into the air.

"H-he left Fairy Tail? Why would anyone do something like that?!"

"To protect us." The dragon slayer spoke softly and started walking back to the bar he had entered earlier, "So I am going to show him that we can protect ourselves now, that way he will be able to come back and join us again."

"So you're going to fight him?"

"Aye!" Happy replied for Natsu already knowing what the teen was thinking.

* * *

"I don't remember this being here last time," Natsu mused looking at the steel plate in the middle of the empty room, beside him was Lucy and Happy, both looking at it strangely for a moment, with a shrug of their shoulders all three took a step forward and rested their feet on the plate, feeling it jolt for a few moments before opening up and slowly taking them down to who knows where.

There was an issue though, Natsu's body saw this as a form of transformation. Lucy started to panic thinking something was wrong with him but thanks to Happy's timely intervention of 'it's just travel sickness' her worries were put at ease... slightly.

It traveled for a little while longer before the group saw a light coming from below them, a long see through sheet of material stopped them from being able to fall off as well as providing them with a decent enough breathing room.

They came to a stop on the ground and Natsu slowly stood to his feet, still feeling a little crook from his bout against the transporting metal plate. His eyes widened as he took in their surroundings though, it was an underground training arena the ceiling was painted to match the colour of the sky while sand and rocks had been brought down to give it a wasteland sort of feel to it.

A few people cheered from the sides, it appeared as if everyone that had been upstairs last time Natsu was here was now down below, the white cloaked man from before took a few steps forward and raised his hand in the air, "Do you remember our agreement Natsu?"

"Hehe, sure do Naruto, lets get this done!"

Lucy froze at hearing the name of one of the most infamous mages currently existing, she had followed his career rather intently, he seemed like a loveable kind of many, not to mention his wild appearance was kind of attractive, the 7th Wizard Saint and a role model for all mages around... then one day his name became taboo, she didn't get any real good information about what happened but she had heard the reports about him falling from grace.

The cloak was tossed to the side and showed off the muscled body of the blonde-haired mage, his left hand slowly moving to the hilt of his sheathed blade. He placed it gently on the ground and looked to both Natsu and Happy, "Please do not touch my sword. Now come Natsu," Naruto waved his hand in front of him signaling the pink-haired fire mage to come.

Happy moved forward to touch the blade only for Kuraja to appear next to it, his fangs bared. "I-I'll just sit here ok?" He spoke out nervously and Kuraja slowly just lowered his head to the ground, his body coiling protectively around the blade.

Natsu smirked and charged forward, his arms covered by burning hot flames, Lucy watched in keen interest to see just what kind of magic the outlawed mage used.

Natsu came within kicking distance before the Naruto moved, quickly striking forward with a palm, his body spinning rapidly and a knee landing right into Natsu's ribs before a swift kick lifted him into the air.

"This is the standard of an A-class mage nowadays? Come Natsu surely you are better than this," Naruto taunted as he swept his foot along the ground in a circular motion, his eyes closing for a brief moment upon opening them again he saw Natsu jumping up and charging forward.

"I'll show you we don't need your protection anymore Naruto, **Roar of the Fire Dragon**!" The young dragon slayers hands came up to his mouth and formed a cone again, a torrent of flames spewing from his mouth, the intensity of them made what he used against the fake earlier seem like child's play.

Naruto didn't even move, a large purple shield raised from the ground to block the flames, lowering once it was done showing a very bored blonde mage.

In a display of speed he vanished, appearing next to Natsu with his leg already raised high in the air, with a tired sigh he brought it down in a flash as Natsu narrowly dodged out of the way, the wasteland seemingly exploding upon impact.

"Wow you have gotten strong, but I ain't just going to back down ya know!"

"Natsu... this is starting to bore me, please hurry up or I might stop holding back..." Naruto drawled out and pulled out a packet of cigarettes from his pocket, placing on the tip of his lips and lighting it, his hands promptly being stuffed back into his pockets afterwards.

Off to the sides Lucy's jaw was hanging on by its hinges, "_His_ holding back?"

"Aye! He moved his leg at the last moment so he wouldn't crush Natsu!" Happy replied quickly his eyes wide with excitement, "You can do it NATSU!" His cheer putting a confident smile on the dragon slayer's face.

Natsu pumped his fists together causing flames to erupt and Naruto to raise a brow before blowing out a plume of smoke, "I've got you right where I want you!"

"Sure you do gaki..." A yawn following shortly after from the blonde, Natsu moved forward faster than before bringing his arms down in a sweeping motion, **"Wing Slash of the Fire Dragon" **Completely unamused by what was happening the blonde leapt into the air and quickly kicked the flaming hands out of the way, twisting in mid air a purple aura came over his right leg, with great force he swung it down again as a large purple leg formed in the air and mimicked his actions.

Natsu didn't even get a chance to move of his own accord, rather he was slammed away by the debris that was knocked up from the axe kick. Naruto landed on the ground gracefully but didn't let up, his body quickly spinning in the around and the aura appearing again around his leg causing the summoned giant leg to crash into Natsu's back.

A gasp of shock came from Natsu as he was kicked across into a painted wall, his body slowly sliding down the side as his breathing deepened. "Give up Natsu... this is a fight that was decided before it begun... you have neither the strength nor the experience to stand on even ground with me."

Naruto breathed out a heavy sigh as his cigarette reached the end, he spat it out and quickly extinguished it with his boot, "Anko, Kurenai... please prepare some of your 'pick me up juice' for Natsu, knowing him he will keep fighting until I knock him out..." Trailed the blonde through half-open eyes, he had expected Natsu to have become much stronger than what he was.

True to Naruto's words though Natsu slowly picked himself up and stumbled forward a few steps, Naruto flashed to appear in front of him and landed a quick punch to his stomach knocking him out cold.

He picked Natsu up and placed him over his wide shoulders turning around and giving a small smile, "Come on, there is no point being down in the arena if no one is fighting ne?"

A few people nodded in agreement while Lucy looked confused as to what to do. Two faces really stood out to her in the crowd though, Bacchus and Jura of the Wizard Saints were not that far behind the blonde following him to the large metal platform.

"Hey Blondie you coming?" Naruto called out to Lucy seeing her stiffen for a moment but nod nonetheless, walking side by side the large snake that handed the blade and coat to Naruto before turning small again and crawling up and coiling around his arm, his shoulders were currently busy much to the snakes dismay.

The metal plate that the large group moved to slowly started moving again, Lucy looked around and saw many highly ranked mages near them, it was the kind of experience she had always dreamed of, only now she was much too scared to actually enjoy it.

The plate came to a stop and everyone moved off going back to the tables they were at earlier and the bar picked up like nothing had happened, Naruto beckoned for his fellow blonde to join his group at a nearby table, he placed Natsu down gently and waited for the drink to come from Kurenai, he waved it in front of the downed slayers nose watching it scrunch up in dismay a large smile spreading across Naruto's face as he forced the drink down Natsu's throat waking him instantly.

"Dammit, I lost again." The rosette mage groaned out.

Naruto gave a small chuckle, "You sure did, now remember our deal?"

"Yeah yeah, I owe you another favour, also I know don't tell anyone about meeting you again."

"Good Natsu," Naruto spoke proudly patting him on the head, "Now I believe it would be best if your group headed back to Fairy Tail... the little miss here has been looking for a way to join a legal guild for some time haven't you Lucy Heartfilia?"

The female blonde recoiled in shock, inching a little further away from her blonde counterpart, "H-how do you know my name?"

"I am Naruto Uzumaki, little birds have been chirping in my ears about you, hence why you and Natsu are both in this city. The whole issue with the fake Salamander was just a bit of a cash bonus for you... so when you are ready I have some tickets for you to take, first class back to magnolia," Naruto took in the look of dread on the young dragon slayers face and gave a small chuckle, "Don't worry Natsu, that drink I just shoved down your throat will help with your motion sickness."

* * *

They had talked for quite some time but now Natsu, Lucy and Happy were standing at the train station, the blonde of their group coming to the conclusion that Naruto was not the bad guy he was made out to be, or if he was, he did a damned good job of hiding it.

They were placed up near the front of the train, a private carriage with soft seats, free meals and drinks. The train started moving and on instinct Natsu's hand came up to cover his mouth, slowly taking it away when he only felt a little dizzy.

He turned to face Lucy with a bright smile, "You can't tell anyone about meeting him ok Luigi?"

A tick mark appeared on her brow as she glared across at him, "It's Lucy," She growled before a look of confusion came over her face, "why not though? He seems like he is still trying to help you guys?"

"Some people in the guild would drop everything to talk to him again... it is for the best if you let me talk to the master first when we get back okay?" His question got a raised brow from the blonde causing him to sigh.

"Natsu is going to tell the master about your recommendation... Aye!" Happy replied with glee, his attention momentarily taken away from the fish in his paws, I say momentarily because it quickly returned and the exceed was lost to the world once again.

Natsu gave a small nod, "The master will want to hear that, not to mention it will give you some time to get shown around the guild a little, I believe you will be accepted without a doubt."

"Does his word really mean that much?" Lucy feeling a little bit special that he would vouch for her.

"Yeah, but the Master probably would have accepted you anyway, he is cool like that!"

* * *

*Thud, Thud Thud. Thud, Thud Thud*

The sound was almost rhythmic, this was because Naruto was chasing up a whisper he had heard, apparently it had something to do with some magical item called Lullaby, a demon from the book of Zeref in the shape of a flute. Mystogan had wished him luck and taken Kuraja with him so they could meet up later.

Currently though he was riding on a train heading to clover town, he had found what he needed. It had been nearly two weeks since he sent Natsu and Lucy on their way.

A small dark guild that went by the name of Eisenwald was planning to attack the Guild Masters using the cursed flute, it was a magical item of Zeref so he didn't want to really leave anything to chance, he needed to tell those that would be affected.

The sound from earlier was caused by Naruto banging his head against the train wall to help pass the time, of course this didn't last long, "I'm fucking bored~"

Thankfully it was not much longer to his stop, he would remember for next time not to take the train alone, there was just nothing for him to do to pass the time.

The hissing of the trains breaks was a sound of pure bliss to the blonde as he quickly leapt up and walked out of his carriage, his hood was drawn so as to not attract too much attention as he moved swiftly through the crowds, his destination was just outside of Clover Town, the guild masters regular hall.

His feet quickly striking the cobblestone pathway beneath him leading him out of town and into the dank forests, activating his invisibility far enough away that it wouldn't be noticed but yet close enough that he wouldn't have to slow down too much.

Thankfully someone exited the build just as he approached meaning he could slip in without anyone being the wiser, having to fight the smile of his old master sitting on a table with his beer mug in hand. Both Bob and Goldmine were standing within ears reach of him.

The masters were talking about Fairy Tail's reckless behaviour and Lucy's body, a messenger bird came flying in with a message hanging from its talons letting the master know he got a message from Mirajane. After showing off his guilds poster girl and receiving the quick message that was left he promptly passed out, clearly the thought of Natsu, Gray and Erza forming a team together was too much for his old mind to handle. this was the perfect time for Naruto to move, he stalked through the small crowd around Makarov and placed a slip of paper into his pocket before leaving the hall and moving away back to the forest.

It would only be a matter of time until he had to buy his next bear, that's when he would feel the slip.

Thankfully not even ten minutes passed before three figures moved out of the guild hall coming to meet with him.

Bob, Goldmine and Makarov, each stood waiting at the treeline and looking around for a moment, "You can come out Naruto..." Spoke the master of Fairy Tail with a small frown on his face, Naruto did as he was asked dropping the invisibility from his body and giving a wave, "It is pretty risky for you to show up here, so I am guessing it is important?"

Makarov's question was answered with a quick nod, "I have been told that an artifact of Zeref is on its way here right now, I just wanted to inform you before I acted incase I should fail... you guys are important to the world ya know?"

The guild masters flinched at the information but ultimately it was Makarov that recovered first, "Which one?"

"Lullaby, the cursed flute."

"Stick around and watch the show, we'll handle this one Blondie," Goldmine stated proudly giving him a small pat on the back and a smile, Bob just smiling at him from where he stood.

"Thanks for letting us know Naruto... even though you have no reason to you still go out of your way to help our guilds."

Makarov gave the blonde a thumbs up while Naruto gave a warm laugh, "Hehe, well my Jiji did always teach me to help out when I could."

"Gah, come here you blonde lug!" Roared Makarov as he ran forward for a teary hug with the exiled mage.

* * *

Erza, Gray, Happy, Lucy and Natsu came charging over the hill, there eyes each going wide when they saw Makarov standing next to Kageyama, who currently held the cursed flute in his hands, "Master!" The yelled together

"Shush~" Chimed Master Bob seemingly appearing from out of thin air.

Lucy looked at the mage with confusion over her face, it was understandable being it was her first time seeing a man with tiny angel wings on his back wearing makeup and women's clothing, "Who's that?"

Erza looked up for a moment and gave a small sigh, that was one of the standard reactions to seeing Bob the first time, the other was 'GET AWAY FROM ME!' "That's Master Bob, the Master of Blue Pegasus."

"Oh Erza-chan you have become very beautiful~" Chimed the crossdressing master, much to the disturbance of those near him.

"Thank you Master Bob, but we cannot allow him to play that flute!" The Scarlet mage's response came quick and sharp, showing she had entered her mission mindset.

Goldmine gave a small chuckle, "We Said, keep quiet and watch. This is the good part."

"It's the master of Quatro Cerberus!" Came the exclamation from Lucy which was accompanied by a quick flinch backwards at having not noticed him standing there.

"Master Goldmine!" Erza followed just as quick.

Makarov gave a small huff as he watched Kage look between him and the flute in his hands, "Nothing will change."

The words from the midget master caused Kage to gasp and widen his eyes in shock.

"Weak humans will always be weak, no matter how long you wait. But weakness is not always a bad thing. Humans are weak creatures from the start. Uneasy by ourselves, we form guilds. Where we have allies and friends! In order to thrive, we bind together and progress ahead. These awkward combinations might run into more walls than a single person would... and we might take a long time to get where we're going... But, as long as we believe in tomorrow and place one foot in front of the other, we will be filled with power from within.

Living a strong life means being able to smile! And not relying on something like that flute." The words from the master caused Kage to give up and drop the flute, Team Natsu rushing forward and cheering for the master.

Goldmine looked to his right and felt the small tap letting him know that the blonde was still there. Naruto had his eyes locked on the flute, he felt a strange calling towards it, he slowly raised his hand but a sharp hiss snapped his attention away from it, a strange eerie glow radiating from the wooden skull flute.

"Get back, something wrong!" Hissed out the snake as the Fairy Tail group moved away, a black smoke trailing from it into the air and forming a large purple magic seal.

**"I can't stand it anymore! I'll devour them myself!" **Was spoken in an otherworldly voice, from the circle came a large wooden figure with three pink eyes glaring down at them hungrily **"Your pitiful souls, that is!"**

Lucy let out a shriek as she took in the form of the hulking wooden behemoth, "That's way too big!" A rather strange complaint for the blonde mage to make.

"So _that's _what you complain about?!" Happy shot back without a second thought

With sweat pouring down his face Kageyama looks onward, "What is this thing?" He questions to no one before continuing right away after a sharp intake of breath, "I had no idea about this!"

"Oh, my! how upsetting."

"So this is a demon from the book of Zeref." Goldmine spoke looking to his right slightly.

Naruto gave a small scoff making sure to keep it not from being too loud that it would draw unwanted attention to him, "Yeah, one of the weaker ones if my memory is right... honestly I wonder how it would taste."

"Probably like wood Naruto-kun~" Chimed master Bob in response causing the three to chuckle while Kageyama looked confused at the situation, he could hear three people but only see two.

The guild masters still in the hall started to flee while the wooden creature sat there seemingly thinking.

Lucy was still in shock over what had happened and held a small stutter in her words because of it, "W-why did the flute turn into that monster?"

"No the monster and the flute are one in the same, its living magic." Informed Goldmine as Lullaby started to move around again.

"Living magic?"

**"So which one of your souls shall I devour fi-" **It stopped mid speech and looked right at the invisible form of Naruto, **"You smell of the old ones ningen, stop hiding from me!"**

"Tsk, this is starting to become too much trouble," Muttered the blonde letting his form show to those around him, he saw Erza's body tense up while the others looked at him with wide eyes.

**"You're _his_ student, come let me feed!"** It roared down at Naruto.

The blonde in question raised his hand slowly and picked at his ear, "You made a threat to other people first, I would hate for you to bite off more than you could chew, _if_ you beat them, _then_ we will tango... stupid piece of wood."

Team Natsu, sans Lucy and Happy cracked their knuckles and each sent a small nod to the blondes way, thankful that he was going to let them have a shot at finishing their self-given mission.

A large grin came over Lullaby's face as it raised its hands in the air.

Erza drew two blade's and pointed them at the hulking wood demon, "Lets go!"

Natsu and Gray each gave a quick nod, "Alright!"

While the three charged forward to deal with Lullaby Naruto found himself surrounded by the guild master, a tired sigh escaping his lips, "You all think I caused this don't you?"

"Of course!"

"You're a Dark Mage!"

"It's in your nature to destroy!"

"Fiend!"

More insults were thrown at him while he just stood there and acted like nothing they said meant anything to him, but in reality each word cut a little deeper into his chest, Goldmine, Bob and Makarov each defensively stood in around the blonde.

"Enough you fools, he came here to tell us of this ahead of time, if he was really going to release something like this wouldn't he have wanted it to be a surprise?!" For such a tiny man Makarov really could yell loud, maybe it had something to do with his titan magic?

Naruto waved a hand dismissively as he watched Lullaby bring his hands together to cast a spell, he blew deeply but only produced a wheezing sound, it would appear that whatever attacks team Natsu had done opened up too many holes on the wooden demon flutes body for him to stay in tune.

"It's okay guys, if it is easier for them to pin the blame on me let them, it happens so often now that I have grown used to it." Naruto gave a small chuckle and spread his wings wide flying high into the air. "By the way, I may have leaked my information to the rune knights as well, they will be here soon." Were the words he was going to part with, only for a large beam of what seemed to be fire shot at him, with a frown twitching at his face he embraced it, walking right through with a purple aura clinging tightly to his person.

When the beam stopped he was hovering in mid-air, with what looked like a purple rib cage around his person that slowly started to fade away. "Lullaby, the weakest of Zeref's demons... you are but a toothpick to me, pester someone else."

To the guild masters calling the very people who want to arrest you to where you currently are is either an insane move or you really are trying to help, luckily Naruto's 'minor' insanity as declared by Makarov is not widely known, not to mention talking down to a demon from the book of Zeref like that was either one of the coolest things they had seen through their weathered old eyes or the most idiotic.

If they had of looked up the would of seen the blonde shrug his shoulders before leaving the scene, clearly thinking he had done enough now.

Erza flew down, requiring into her Black Wing armour as Gray launched a razor blade looking sculpture of ice at Lullaby, both leaving a nice cut along its form

"Natsu!"

"Now!"

Called Erza and Gray respectively, watching the rosette dragon slayer put his arms out to the side, "With a flaming right hand... and a flaming left hand..." He brought his hands down together forcefully and continued his small chant, "When you combine the flames together..." his arms slowly reaching above his head as a large spiraling ball of flames appeared spinning wildly and almost out of control between his hands, "Try eating some of this!"

**"Dazzling Blaze of the Fire Dragon!" **Roared the teen slamming his hands down and letting the ball fly across the clearing between himself and the wooden demon, watching the impact burn it away to its wooden form that fell towards the ground.

Before it had a chance to hit though long purple string flew out from the ground and ripped it down with force, shattering it upon impact and causing a large beam of white energy to fly into the clouds above them ripping a hole through them to the night sky.

Naruto's final act was to ensure that it would never come back.

* * *

A month had passed since then, apparently Fairy Tail had destroyed the meeting hall but the council paid for it after taking Erza into custody for the night, Natsu had busted through the doors of the council chambers and ended up in prison as well.

That was weeks ago now, but now the two were standing across from one another as they walked down the street, Erza having just found out that Natsu had seen Naruto in Hargeon town before the Lullaby fiasco.

He was honestly just making his punishment worse, first he went off and stole an S-class request, which was done now thankfully, now she finds out this piece of information? Clenching her teeth tightly she turned away from him, "I will speak to the Master about this and see what he thinks!"

"He already knows Erza..." He wanted to take back the words as soon as he said them.

"W-what?" She stuttered in shock, looking at him for a few seconds longer before storming off towards the guild.

"This is why I said not to speak about it Lucy, those two were close."

"She didn't know Natsu-kun plus that was ages ago, Erza was bound to find out sooner or later." The youngest of the Strauss siblings defended, somehow she had been dragged along with the group on the mission.

Gray gave a small huff, "Yeah let it go flame-brian!"

"Aye! Actually has anyone seen how sad everyone is?" Happy commented being the first to notice his surroundings, Lucy looked around and gasped at the faces they were receiving, Natsu heard the whispers and shook his head.

"Quickly, we have to get to the guild!"

* * *

"Did you hear me Naruto?" Deadpanned Mystogan to the blonde across from him, Naruto's feet were up on the seat he was sitting on his eyes closed and Kuraja slithering around on the ground below him.

"Yeah... I did," Came the short reply, the blonde wouldn't admit it but it actually hurt a little when all the guild masters were going to shove the blame onto him straight away.

Needless to say the blonde had been a little down lately, not to mention the tabloids constantly slandering him... if he ever became a legal mage again more than a few words would be spoke to this Jason fellow.

"You okay Naruto?" One good thing about the amount of money the duo had been how they could continue to buy private carriages no matter how much they traveled, questions were hardly asked anymore even when Naruto kept his face hidden.

"Yeah... I just find it stupid how far people will go for a grudge, the Uchiha's were the same and I guess the business with Phantom is just bringing up some unwanted memories," The blonde quickly replied, a deep frown across his face.

A small chuckle escaped Mystogan's mouth, "Well lets hope the damage done isn't the same ne?"

"Tsk, how long?"

"A two hours till my stop, yours is nearly twelve after that."

"At least I have Kuraja this time... I hate riding trains alone."

* * *

In the rundown basement of Fairy Tail things were covered in a gloomy tint. One scarlet mage was seeing red, first she found out that the guild was hiding their run-in's with Naruto, now she comes back to a destroyed Guild Hall.

She didn't even speak to anyone as she entered, merely she moved to a table right in the master's view, her hands folded in front of her and her gaze level.

"Is Erza broken?" Mirajane, who had been through a monstrous change since we last saw her questioned her younger sister.

Lisanna looked over to the oldest of the Strauss siblings, seeing Mira in her normal sundress, because of an incident involving her second Satan Soul she no longer used her magic, officially putting herself out of commission, "No... she just found out about the rules regarding Naruto-nii."

"Oh, I should warn the master!" Mira exclaimed with a panic, she saw the older man jump up onto Erza's table and cringed, just waiting for the yelling to start.

Only it didn't, five minutes had passed and still nothing.

"I still don't get why you wouldn't tell me Master?" Erza questioned trying her best to keep a straight face.

Makarov slowly shook his head from side to side, "Because you would go looking for him, he will come to you when he is ready."

"But, but we need him now!" The yelling had started, her hands striking the table as she stood to her feet.

Makarov stood up as well and tried to keep a level head, why did all his mages have to be so stubborn? "No we don't because there isn't going to be a fight!"

Erza spun on her feet and walked to the door, prying it open and looking at thee stairs up, "If Naruto was here, he wouldn't take this sitting down, he would probably march up to Phantom by himself. He loved this guild and what it stood for... seeing us all cowering down here, i-it makes me sick!"

The door slammed shut behind her and Makarov slumped down onto the table seemingly ages years in a second.

Mira walked up and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, "Why didn't you just tell her?"

"Because this is much like the event that got him where he is now, I don't want him being bombarded with questions when he arrives nor do I want him to feel like it is his duty to help us... He already does more than enough." Trailed the master looking down at his hands, he hated lying to his children but for now it was needed.

* * *

Two days passed quickly, Makarov had lead his guild into battle after what happened to team Shadow Gear, causing him to have his magic removed from him via the means of one of the Element Four, Phantom Lords S-class mages, he was not the only one that was injured though. Erza had hidden herself away in the showers blaming herself for what happened, thinking of what could have been done to change the outcome.

Apparently Lucy was rescued by Natsu at some point during their skirmish with Phantom Lord, now again Fairy Tail sat in the basement, gathering the weapons they could and licking their wounds, talks of revenge spreading like wildfire while Mira and Cana were doing their best to try and contact the mages that were out on jobs.

Lucy trying to say sorry and thinking the entire affair was her fault, doubt started flowing through the young mage, thankfully between Gray, Elfman, Natsu and Lisanna they were able to change her mind.

Convincing her that Fairy Tail was indeed her home and she had nothing to fear. Cana's cards were thrown into the air in frustration, " It's no use, I can't tell where they are!"

The duo knew Naruto was on his way but they didn't know just when he would be arriving.

Laxus was arrogant, thinking that Lucy should become his woman if he were to help, Mira lost the small amount of restraint she had for the man and destroyed the communication lacrima, its shining shards fluttering in the air and slowly falling to the ground.

Tears started streaming down her face, and she looked like she was about to talk only for a large hand to drop down on top of her head, "Cana... your cards will never tell you about me, and Mira chin up okay? We are going to make it through this."

They both turned to the owner of the voice, their eyes nearly leaving their sockets, "Naruto?!"

The exclamation from the duo caused the guild to spin around and stare, the blonde quickly looked away, a strange sensation coming over him, he walked up the stairs and left causing their jaws to drop, Elfman and Natsu chasing after him while Mira tried to calm the rest of the guild.

It was a few more seconds before the building started to shake, Alzack coming down the stairs with panic written on his face "Outside!" The guild members didn't need to be told twice and were already quickly climbing the stairs back to the surface.

Natsu and Elfman looking at Naruto strangely while Erza had wide eyes, never actually expecting him to show up, the master had said they didn't need him, was he here without being asked? Naruto glared at the moving castle as its large steps came to a halt, lowering itself down into the water and opening up the front walls, a large cannon like barrel coming out.

Erza snapping to her senses as a large buildup of magic started to form at the front of the barrel, "This is bad, everyone get back!" She screamed quickly running forward causing her towel to fall from her body, requiping into her adamantine armour, praying that with its high defensive stats she would be able to block the attack.

Naruto watched while the guild started calling her to come back, he watched as she set her stance, a large magic seal appearing in front of her as the cannon fired.

**"Living Defense." **

It impacted but didn't hit the target everyone thought it would, a large purple torso pulled itself out of the ground and raised it's hands to block the strike, slowly getting more and more cracks along its length, Naruto could feel the sting in his hands.

Living Defense was his strongest shield, using his magic and body to take the brunt of the damage at a severely reduced rate, the power slowly leaving the beam as it became thinner and thinner, it wasn't until it was all over that Erza looked around, surprised that she hadn't felt a thing.

Her eyes fell on Naruto as he lowered his arms, his hands barely hanging on to his wrists.

"W-why?" She questioned seeing the pained expression on his face.

Naruto lifted his hands to his mouth and slowly bit down on them injecting the toxins through his bloodstream to speed up his healing, shedding his skin might take up to much magic and while this would make everything he did more painful, it would definitely save his reserves, "Because, you guys were my Nakama."

The way he spoke made it seem like it was the clearest reason in the world to throw yourself in front of a large magical beam.

"Naruto-san... I figured you would come, I brought someone a little special for you to play with," Jose's voice called out from the castle putting the blonde on edge as a strange blur flew through the skies.

"The Fallen King... I expected someone a little stronger to be our king," It was teenager hovering up in the air, mint-green hair falling down around her shoulders, she seemed to be wearing mesh shorts and top under a white battle skirt with slits along the side and a white sleeveless crop top, long white arm warmers ran from her wrists to just above her elbow while a large red canister sat on her back with its straps coming over her chest in a criss cross pattern. "Names Fu, and I am going to be kicking your ass today!"

She was hovering in the air due to some insectoid wings that had sprouted from her back, the rate at which they were beating let off an almost eerie buzz.

Naruto looked at her for a moment before his large wings spread from his back lifting him into the skies, his coat vanishing showing he knew a little bit of requip magic, his hand going to his sheathed blade and bringing it in front of him causing the girl's eyes to widen.

"If that is what I think it is this might actually be an interesting fight _King_!" She trailed with sarcasm dripping from her voice.

"Kuraja, find her familiar and take it down!" Naruto roared opening his mouth wide as the large snake flew out, spreading its wings wide and looking around for a few moments its tongue flicking at the air.

_'Scent acquired.' _The large snake spoke before flying off and starting its hunt.

Naruto flicked his blade towards the water literally carving a path down to the bottom and sending everything it struck into the air, he turned to look at Fu with a bored gaze, "The birds were as arrogant as you, I shall show you what happens when you help attack something I care about!" The water that had previously been knocked into the air raged down around him as if helping to convey what he spoke.

"Oh, I've been itching for a good fight, I hope you don't disappoint!"

* * *

**PA: And the chapter can end for now... both stories ended this week right before a major fight, maybe that was my joke to you after all? Or maybe I just didn't feel like writing a big fight scene this week who knows. Anyway pm or review me with any questions you might have and I will get back to you as soon as I can.**


	8. Chapter 8

**PA: A pretty quick update, I guess you could say this is in celebration of Fairy Tail coming back! First new episode was worth the wait, I can't wait to see what the fights will be like now with the new animation style now though. Also did you guys notice the new style as much as I did? Or does that come from watching all the different animators from Naruto?**

**Pheonixblade: It's reptiles so not just snakes and Fu is insects... the reason is because it is needed, not trying to give away too much but it will make some sense later down the track, plus I find this Naruto's personality to fit a reptile much more than a fox. It does play a big part in the story and the full reason will be explained later on.**

**You are not missing anything so don't worry about that, it is just that I haven't given out the reason yet.**

**mellra: I do hope this fight lives up to your expectations!**

**Cerulean Knight: All jinchuuriki will be Fallen Slayers. But no not all of the ninja that appear will be, there will be new types of magic invented and I might even form the guild Akatsuki yet... I am not too sure though. The defense was Susano basically.**

**Kupo Prodigy: I had thought of doing the who ability scaling thing, and that is still a good ****possibility. The full power of Fallen magic is currently out of his reach... trust me you will know when he has obtained it though.**

**I found that Slayers in Fairy Tail are pretty arrogant. So I have kept the Fallen Slayers following that path for now, of course there will be a few like Wendy who doubt their skills. But yes I agree he does have some pretty crazy fame backing him up.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Fairy Tail (if someone ever uses the name disclaimer I am going to get so confused proof reading.)**

* * *

Naruto let his gaze shift over to the members of Fairy Tail for a moment, seeing them being rallied by Erza, all banding together to defend that Lucy girl, it was remarkable how quickly they could form a bond with someone. "Quiver in fear for the next 15 minutes while Jupiter recharges!" Naruto was really starting to get over hearing Jose preach, this entire thing would be easier if that man wasn't allowed near a microphone.

"Boy, he really loves the sound of his own voice don't he?" Fu let out a small whistle as she cracked her knuckles and let a tail fall out from behind her, her arms moving to grab the canister on her back and tuck it under her armpit.

A risen brow from Naruto and the sound of bones cracking back into place rung heavy through the air, "You do know our magic right? Cause last time I had to fight one of us they knew nothing..."

A twisted smirk played at the mint girls lips, **"Fallen Roar."** She called, this alone put her ahead of Itachi.

Naruto flew to the side watching as the Roar attack soared passed him and dispersed into the air. A large tail swung down harshly at him, sharp stinger dripping with venom hanging from the end, his tail shot up and quickly coiled around it constricting and causing a loud snap.

"A fast little dragonfly aren't you? But my strength seems to be more than your body can handle," A small grin playing along his lips as he felt her move forward quickly, landing a light strike on his chest.

**"Bug Bite!" **

Quickly she zipped away and he rose a brow to her actions, "Can you feel the poison flowing through your body yet? Stings don't it?" She quipped having a very pleased look on her face.

"I am walking anti-venom..." Trailed the blonde giving a drawn out sigh.

Fu's mouth slowly formed into an O shape, "Well that made my attack seem pointless..."

"Just a tad," He spoke with his tail swaying gracefully from side to side, **"Fallen Howl!"** The attack was instantaneous and tore through the air, creating waves beneath them from the pressure and power released.

It connected but there was no screaming, in fact there was a small giggle able to be heard just past the howling winds, the black torrent finally died down to show Fu standing there with what appeared to be an exoskeleton over her form, "That tickled... please keep going."

The blonde took a deep breath in and placed his blade into his pocket dimension, scales quickly erupting over his body as he crouched down, large spikes protrude from his spine running the length of his shoulders to the tip of his tail, his nails growing longer and sharper slowly turning into claws, "Awww you look like a little crocodile, how cute?" Taunted Fu bringing her hand up to play with her lips.

**"Aww, you look like... a bug..." **

"I'm a fucking beetle with a tail!"

**"You're a bug!"**

"Beetle!"

**"Bug!"**

* * *

Erza looked up in shock, you would have to to be crazy not to feel the magic flying around above the guild battle, but what was even more ludicrous was how they were arguing over what the girl was. Erza too thought she was just a bug... the fact that Naruto thought the same thing had nothing to do with her choice.

"Natsu, Gray, Elfman... I am counting on you guys to help me take down Jupiter, everyone else don't let them pass, we are fighting for our honor and comrades! Don't let their efforts be for naught!" Roared the scarlet knight causing a cheer of support to rise behind her, slowly she looked up to the sky as Happy and Natsu flew past, Gray and Elfman not too long after shock-waves ripping the air apart as the two Fallen Salyers fought.

With a quick shake of her head she ran forward, quickly leaping up the path Gray set out for her, with Naruto occupied, Mystogan no where to be found and the other mages either down, missing or not up for the task... it was up to her to fight Jose.

Jose was a Wizard Saint like Naruto had been, so she figured they would be along the same level... regret started flowing through her, she really should've just left it at fighting Jose.

* * *

The past 14 minutes had left the two Fallen Slayers in a deadlock, Naruto's strength was far superior but Fu was able to just move in time to avoid taking the brunt of the damage, letting her body heal any she took quickly enough.

**"You ain't as bad as I thought you would be 'Fallen King'," **Giggled the minty girl as she felt his strike graze the side of her face, snapping her body off to the side, her wings spreading wide and stopping her from flying out to the sea and never returning.

He tilted his head to the side and gave a small chuckle from his crawling form, **"It would seem we are getting nowhere... forgive me but I must end this quickly, I can not let Jupiter fire again!" **

**"Primal Force!" **His body returned to its upright position, purple scales covering him completely, his braid flicking around in the air wildly. Primal Force could be compared to a master of Dragon Force, his speed and strength were unmatched, the only draw back was that you became more in-tune with the Fallen during this state, without the proper training the voices could drive you mad.

A large smirk spread across Fu's face as she looked across at Naruto, **"Goody... I was wondering if you knew it too, Primal Force!" **

Before she got the chance to fully transform Naruto tore through the air plunging his arm deep into her chest, watching the confused look that came over her face for a moment before she was sent soaring, crashing straight through the castle walls of Phantom Lord's guild building.

**"Fucking Bastard!" **Was the call that split the air as Naruto flew forwards sending a pressure wave behind him from the speed.

* * *

"That tiny crack can't destroy a lacrima of this size!" Totomaru of the Element four cackled, he was the fire mage of the group holding an almost complete grasp of the elements. His hair seemed to be split straight down the middle, black one side and white the other, a black line running across his face horizontally.

Natsu bit his lip and glared across at the man slowly raising to his feet and cracking his knuckles while Happy panicked at the thought of Jupiter going of again.

**"Fucking Bastard!" **Natsu looked up to see that girl Naruto was fighting fly into the room and crash right through the lacrima, himself and Totomaru looking at one another for a few moments in pure shock and disbelief.

"D-did that just happen?" Muttered out the member of the element four while Natsu absently nodded his head and Happy cheered.

**"Hello Natsu... I didn't interrupt did I?" **The voice of Naruto hung heavy in the air as he dropped to the ground next to Fu, his hand extending down and picking her up by her throat.

Natsu quickly shook his head from side to side, yes Naruto had interrupted his fight but right now he didn't feel like voicing that.

"Naruto you stopped Jupiter...again." The blue exceed cheered happily as it flew into the air and started forming circles.

The shifting of glass and rubble caught the attention of Naruto and he craned his neck to see what was happening, **"You fucking used me to stop the cannon?!"**

A very angry girl was pulling herself out of the destroyed ground, the lacrima falling down around her as she clenched her fists tightly,**"Natsu, I believe you should leave... now!" **

The rosette was about to question what he meant when the ground around him exploded, Naruto stood perfectly still holding the fist of the girl who had lashed out at him in anger, he just wasn't able to react in time, he didn't even see the two start to move before the appeared in front of him holding one another back.

Natsu made an effort to move but it was all for naught, the castle they were inside started shifting around as a warning call went out to those that may have been fighting... something about entering the second of something.

Hearing a pained groan Naruto turned to look at the younger Dragon Slayer... a groan left his own body at the sight, **"Happy get him out of here, I really don't need to be protecting him now." **A sharp bite leaving Naruto's mouth it was true right now this was not needed.

"Aye sir!"

"No you don't, I'm not going to just let you run away," Totomaru bit out standing up tall and moving forward to engage Natsu while he was weakened.

"If you're a man, fly to the heavens and become a star!" bellowed the largest Strauss sibling as his reptile arm launched Totomaru into the air and out of the castle

Standing beside him was Gray who had his arms crossed over his chest, "Gray Elfman, we gotta get out of here!"

"Calm down Happy everything is fine," Gray drawled out, slowly taking in the room around him.

**"You can't strangle me you bastard!" **The demonic sounding roar caused Gray to snap his eyes around to where two winged creatures were standing glaring at one another.

The blonde one tossed the small girl into the air, spinning his body quickly and landing a harsh kick to her stomach as she descended, which sent her back up hurtling into the air. **"I was nice when I asked last time, now... get the fuck out! I don't need to be protecting people at the moment... handle Phantom Lord and I will deal with Bug girl!"** Naruto bit out his glowing blue eyes freezing Elfman and Gray in place.

His wings stretched wide and he tore through the castle wall up into the sky planning to continue his battle outside. Happy helped Natsu to his feet only for the pinkette to fall back to his knees and strike the ground hard, "Dammit, I couldn't even keep up!"

"Come on let's go find those other element guys Natsu, we can beat them up right?"

Natsu stood up and rolled his right shoulder, "Heh, lets show Naruto that we can handle things."

Gray sweat dropped at what may have been the quickest change of attitude ever.

* * *

His wings snapped wide and held him still in the air, his eyes scanning the area around him, he knew Fu was still around here somewhere. A slow deep breath was released from his mouth as he brought out his twin daggers, a burning black shroud covering them and extending their length.

Holding them against his arms he spun wildly on the spot, twisting faster and faster he became a blur, looking like a spinning top that had no intention of slowing down. It's form slowly became bigger and bigger expanding and stretching to find his target.

Friction, he felt something slowly pressing against his spin and canceled it, dashing forward and bringing his dusky blades down onto a red canister. A grin threatened to split her face in two as she let him push forward, her body twisting and delivering a quick couple of kicks to pepper his defenseless sides.

His body rumbled for a few moments before a loud bout of laughter erupted from it, **"That all you got bug?"** His daggers spun on his hands, facing towards Fu as a glint flashed through his eyes, **"Piercing Fang!" **

Fu blocked the strike, or at least she thought she had, a large shadow was casted over her form, looking up she saw a hand that seemed to be made of shadows descend on her, a long blade in its hand, a fade away dodge managed to move her out of the way just enough to be blown back by the water it sent up.

As the water fell back down to the ocean below them she saw his arm seemed to be stuck, jerking back and forth until he finally ripped it out, the large arm from before slowly coming back up to hover behind him, looking down she saw the water rushing into a deep scar in an attempt to fill it.

She had nothing that would be able to defend against that, his offensive magic seemed to be in a whole 'nother league to her own. Maybe she just need to hit him with more attacks so he couldn't bust out those big ones of his?

**"Fallen Swarm!" **Fu's call managed to get Naruto's attention and the blonde whipped his head around to see her arms extend forward and droves of either wasps or bees flew at him, it was hard to tell because they were entirely black and moving too fast for him to get a clear look at their body type, his hands moved to face the swarm and a level gaze was cast over them, **"Nami no Kiba." **(Wave of Fangs), his jaw dislocated as a torrent of snakes flew out, their white scales nearly blindingly bright as they covered the skies.

Black met white in an explosion that drew all attention back to their fight, gasps were heard from the ground as the duo released their attacks and charged forward bringing their respective weapons above their heads, crashing them down against one another again.

Fu made to kick only for her foot to be met by Naruto's, spin to land an elbow the same thing happened, in a frantic move she lent forward and bit him, maybe she would be able to slow him down with some poison, completely forgetting about her earlier lesson.

Only to feel his fangs did in to her skin, a strong burning sensation ripping through her flesh. She kicked away and felt part of her neck leave her slowly she brought her left hand up and placed it over the bite on the same side, pulling it away and seeing her now blood soaked hand she flipped it.

No longer caring what happened she tore through the skies, **"You fucking bit me!" **The scream from the girl did little to affect Naruto, the blonde wasn't even going to point out that she bit him first and gave a small sigh as he brought his dusky blades up again, swinging them through the air and watching the small waves they let out impair the bugs path.**  
**

Blood poured out from the blondes neck but he made no movement against it, intent on just beating down the bug before him, **"Living Shadow,"** The blonde called softly as a large back skeleton formed behind him, holding a pair of swords in its hands, Naruto spun his blades and the shadow did the same, a black aura slowly covering Naruto and putting them in perfect sync.

Fu looked up in shock, sure she knew 'Living Defense' but its Shadow forms offensive abilities wouldn't be stopped by something like that... not to mention she would still take damage, she watched as Naruto dropped his left arm towards the ground and pointed his right blade at her.

**"Why are you fighting this man's battle?"**

She tilted her head to the side at the blonde's question, spinning the canister in front of her body fast enough to start forming a twister, as it cleared Naruto could see the canister was actually a large bo staff, the material it was made form he was no longer sure, it had become slimmer but he was sure she would be more of a pain.

**"I wanted to have a good fight... the fact that I have been forced to draw out Tatsumaki fully should make you proud."** (Tatsumaki= Tornado) A large toothy grin spreading over her face, **"No one has ever beaten me while Tatsumaki is at my side." **

Without even missing a beat he brought his hand down and the shadow followed, slamming its blade down as Fu ripped up a large tornado to hold the blade back, his lips twitching a few times before a predatory grin stretched across his face, **"There is a first for everything Bug." **

Fu's eyes went wide as Naruto lifted his left arm from the ground, seeing the large black skeleton do the same movement. Her arms moved faster than she thought possible, spinning her staff fast and creating a vortex around herself, feeling its form strain against the blades as they stopped mere meters from her body, a large roar left her body and she expelled an air-wave out to knock the skeleton back causing the same action to happen to the blonde.

Somehow his grin managed to become wider, his arms quickly snapping back into place as he dove forward, Fu seeing the action sent a large twister at him, hearing it impact and letting out a sigh of relief... that was until a large groan hit her ears.

She looked up in shock as the crazy blonde cut through the raging winds, blood pouring from his body and running into the black shroud and evaporating, giving his entire form a steamy effect.

**"Bug, don't tell me you're done yet?" **The mocking tone his voice held sent chills down Fu's spine, slowly pulling Tatsumaki up against, a small twister forming on either side of the long staff, she would just have to meet him head on, she grimaced at the thought... he looked insane right now not to mention he just cut _through_ a tornado, if nothing else that alone was going to be recorded in history.

Little did she know that her and Naruto were high enough in the air to be seen from anywhere in the town, inwardly sighing she dashed in already regretting her mistake as he copied her, before she could even start to swing her staff his leg had already looped around it and was holding it in place, he lifted his blades up high and brought them crashing down, full intent behind ending the fight then and there.

Fu closed her eyes and accepted her fate, only to feel the strike fly just past her head and a loud cough from in front of her, a warm liquid splashing against her face slowly she opened her eyes to see a large beetle flapping its wings behind Naruto, its horn through his chest and pulling him across to the side.

**"Chomei?"**

"Hai Lady Fu, I was able to escape that pesky snake for a few moments, when I saw what was happening I came as fast as I could... thankfully I made it in time." Chomei was a large Rhinoceros beetle, its wings flapping at an alarming speed.

**"If your familiar is here... where do you think mine is?" **Naruto croaked out and pulled himself off of Chomei's horn, a reasonable sized hole in his chest. The beetle readied itself for a second strike only to find itself unable to move as a pressure she couldn't describe started squeezing the life out of her, **"You took your time Kuraja..." **

The blonde looked at the hole in his chest and sighed, the black aura around him vanishing as he dropped his daggers they flashed for a few seconds before being taking away into his personal dimension, now resting in his hand was the blade from earlier.

_"You having fun, yes?"_ The scaly voice of Naruto's partner called out mentally, the blonde gave him a deadpan expression.

Naruto's hands tightened around his blade, his eyes closing in concentration. **"Release: Utsukushii Namida!" **(Beautiful Tear) The chains that held the blade in place snapped, its sheath breaking apart and moving to block up the hole in the blondes chest as the blade grew to be a odachi, nearly 8 ft long, **"The rumors about this blade are completely false, it doesn't suck the life from what it strikes... it only rips the magic out, smashing it into my own body... you are the first person to see it unsealed, now shall we begin round two?" **

He flicked his wrist down and sent a long white slash through the air, Fu could only watch as it cleaved the water in two. The normally black bat like wings on his back had turned bony and bleach white. Along with the once purple marks that rested above his eyes.

Fu spun her staff quickly around herself, if anything she just needed to buy herself some time, it proved worthless as the blonde gave it a solid slash and she noticed his signs of fatigue reduce, he gave a large grin as he saw her panicked face, Fu turned tail she needed to put as much distance between herself and him as possible hopefully he couldn't hold that form for long.

She was making good distance, she looked over her shoulder and saw he was no longer in her sight, turning her head back to the front she slammed on the brakes, skidding through the air as he slowly turned around, **"You weren't planning on leaving were you? That would be quite rude of you... Bug."**

He took a small step, followed by a slightly larger when then vanished altogether appearing right in front of her and landing a harsh knee into her stomach, the force behind the attack caused her to cough up a large chunk of blood.

She hung limp on his knee, there was nothing she could do, it was almost funny in a way, she wanted to see the Namida so desperately, but now when it is right in front of her she didn't even had enough strength to look at it, she felt herself being roughly picked up by her hair, orange eyes meeting glowing blue, **"Bug, I have decided there is still use for you, soar bug and return when you can, your life belongs to me now." **His voice sounded like it came from right next to her, though she spun in the air and could see how far away she was already, something hit her back and crumbled weakly there was a short gasp and something else hit her, it was able to slow her enough so she didn't break through another wall she figured.

Weakly looking up she saw a shadow appear in the hole she must have created, its large wings nearly not fitting through the frame, **"Good Bug, do you want to rest now?" **

She was barely able to get a nod out of her body, she felt her Primal Force leave, her body grasping at strings to stay conscious, a purple scaly hand reached down and picked her up by the back of her top, she found herself flung over a shoulder... it was much better than she expected.

"Naruto?"

"Naruto what happened?!" Erza shouted out, not able to take herself away from his chest.

The blonde turned at the voice, coming face to face with the scarlet mage, a wide grin spread across his face until he noticed her eyes wide with horror, **"It really isn't as bad as it looks, plus I am sore all over so it doesn't even feel out-of-place."**

He was practically running on fumes, Erza wasn't the only one there though, Mirajane, Elfman, Gray and Master Makarov were all present as well. Each were looking at the large white patch in the middle of Naruto's chest.

Naruto looked around to where he had kicked Fu, seeing that she had in fact hit Jose, **"Can't believe I made that throw, so are we done here? Or are there still some more people for me to kick around Jiji?" **

A knowing smile spread across Makarov's face, the duo had arrived in time, he had met Mystogan earlier, the blue-haired mage having already wiped out most of the Phantom Lord Branches, and even going as far as to get his magic back. Naruto looked like he had the battle of a lifetime, judging from the sounds that had been outside until a few moments ago, that probably wasn't far from the truth.

Naruto's tongue flicked out of his mouth for a second, his head turning to look over his right shoulder, his sword swinging down and striking something, it seemed to stop mid swing, it took a few more moments for anything to happen.

**"Hehe, you're the one that attacked Jiji, allow me to repay the favor, Rend and Repair Namida!" **The long blade in the blondes hand flashed for a moment. A girlish scream erupting from Aira of the Element Four. Naruto's chest glowed and the white circle in the middle started to reduce in size, a long drawn out breath escaping his lips as he removed his blade letting the man fall to the ground.

**"So I got Jose, Bug and Aria... I think I get the grand prize eh Jiji?" **Naruto wobbled on his feet but luckily was caught by Erza, quickly she wrapped his arm over her shoulder.

"Elfman, please take the girl from Naruto, I can't carry them both," Her brown eyes looked at his glassy blue, the sword in his hand falling to the ground and shattering like a teardrop, the scales on his body receding and showing just how damaged he was, "Naruto are you ok?" Worry was written all over her form

"Heh, stop worrying about me, I don't like that look on your face," He joked and laughed weakly until he came face to face with Makarov.

The two looked at one another for a few moments both giving a stupid smile, "I'd hug you if I wasn't scared to break you right now!"

"Careful Jiji, don't make me talk down to yo- whoops too late!"

"Short jokes aren't funny Naruto!"

Erza held onto the blonde tightly, if anyone asked it was for his own safety, but deep down she just wanted to be as close as possible to Naruto, it had been years since she saw him last, she really didn't count that time in Kakura, "Master I think it would be best if Naruto were to recover before we let him leave again."

A simple plan and hopefully it would stop the fighting between the two mages, a small nod was received from the smaller man, as he walked over to Jose and glared down at the man, he grew so he would be able to carry the man out, the rune knights would be here soon, he just hoped that they could clear up everything.

But even still, Fairy Tail's path had not dimmed in the slightest they had all but managed to solidify their position as Fiora's strongest guild, they were able to make the best of a bad situation.

* * *

Four days had passed since then, Naruto had fallen asleep on the way back to the guild and had not woken since. Kuraja did not seem that phased, but then again it was always hard to tell the emotion of a snake that wouldn't talk to you. Fu had come by once each day to see how he was doing, she was more than happy to help out with repairing the guild, while she was not trusted much she got little jobs to do.

Erza had been absent from the repairs, having decided to stay next to the blonde until he woke up, she had found out that the master had called him to help with the upcoming fight, she felt glad to know that he would still come to their aid if they needed him. When they first set him down they noticed it looked like he had been cut all over his body, it was a miracle he had been moving at all, much less fighting an opponent that was easily around S-class level of strength.

Now his body was wrapped up in bandages and Erza had her head resting on top of his arm, he had grown so much, it was kind of funny, to her at least, that he still had one side of his hair in a braid. Did her words really mean that much to him?

His face twisted into a look of pain for a few seconds, his eyes slowly opening and adjusting to the light.

Blue met brown and he gave a warm smile, "I thought I told you to stop worrying?" He mused out weakly sitting up a little and stretching his back out, an audible pop bouncing off the small walls. He tried to give a small laugh at the situation but only ended up with a harsh cough, the grip around his hand tightened momentarily and he rose a brow to her, watching the blush creep over her face as she turned away quickly.

"I-uh was just checking up on you like everyone else, yep wondering when you would be able to move about again!" She proclaimed loudly and nodded in a hurried manner, Naruto shock his head to the side and flicked his legs of the bed.

"You are a terrible liar... now are you going to let go of my hand so I can walk?"

"Only if you promise not to lea-"

**"Naruto Uzumaki!" **

The loud booming sound of his voice from outside struck confusion through his already incredibly cloudy mind, he gently pulled his hand away missing the dejected look that came across her face as he stood to his feet, throwing a coat over his body, it was still tender he lifted his hand up and tore away the bandages, sinking his fangs in deep, pumping the same toxin from when he blocked the Jupiter cannon before.

He proceeded to rip away his bandages and Erza could see just how fast he was healing which was amazing, his body gingerly moved to the door and twisted the handle, he felt a sudden weight drop onto his shoulders and gave a small chuckle, "It's good to see you too Kuraja, you been keeping 'em in line?"

_"Magic Council, Outside. Our Generation, Outside. No Escape." _

The blonde bit down on his lip, turning around to look at Erza, he couldn't be angry, honestly he doubted that she knew about it at all. He just shook his head and left, as soon as he stepped onto the street a deep bow took place, he stood stock still like a deer in headlights, Bacchus and Jura were the only ones that didn't, each held a smug smile on their face though.

Ultear walked forward with a playful smile on her face and a scroll in hand, "After it was put to a vote, Wizard Saint Naruto Uzumaki is hereby relieved of all accusations made against his person, his previous position as a Saint is returned and he has been moved into the place of one Jose Porla, he is now to be known as the 6th Saint. We are deeply sorry for any inconvenience that has befallen upon you."

She handed it forward to the Blonde and he quickly read it over, all he had to do was sign his name, he saw the dirty look _Siegrain_ gave him hidden behind the false smile, he honestly felt just like doing it to spite him, let alone what it would mean for the guild.

He gave a small nod and Ultear pulled a pen from her top handing it to him, he bit back a chuckle and merely smiled and shook his head at her actions, quickly signing it and handing it back only for her to shake her head and place it in his pockets instead, in a way it made sense that Ultear was handling it, she out of everyone on the council spoke to him the most during his time as a Saint, so it would mean the most coming from her.

"And what would you have us address you as Naruto-san?"

"Fallen King, Naruto Uzumaki, Kinda makes sense... I am a Fallen Slayer," He gave a small smirk and heard a few chuckles from around him. A few members of the council came up and said sorry in person while others gave a small nod of their head to him, Ultear made sure to close any distance between them and leaned right up to his ear.

"Are we even now Naruto-kun?" She purred and felt his arms clamp down around her.

"Yeah we are sweet now Ultear, still don't want to do any missions with _him_ though," He felt her nod in response as he slowly pulled away, Jura and Bacchus coming up to him and shaking his hand, he found a bottle of expensive bourbon placed into his coat pocket too, Bacchus merely flicked the end of his nose in recognition.

It took him some time to finish getting through the apologies of everyone, with it all out-of-the-way he dragged his body to the Guild Hall, it had already started reconstruction, something he found impressive.

Erza was taking out her anger over something by bossing people around, Gray and Natsu were fighting over who could carry the most wood while some strange girl watched with hearts in her eyes. What really caught his attention was the Blonde and Green heads that were talking to one another.

He walked forward and gently put his hand on the minty one, "Hey Bug, I didn't expect you to stick around?"

"Look who finally woke up eh?" She responded with a grin on her face, "Apparently there was a lot of damage done to this place, I thought I would lend a hand even if they don't trust me until you got up, gave me something to do at least... what took you so long by the way?"

He gave a small scoff and motioned to the brand new skin over his chest causing her to look away sheepishly, "How did you pull up Lucy?"

He regretted asking the question right away, she just wouldn't shut up, apparently she was kidnapped a fair few times, honestly how could something like that happen so often to one person? Then she watched Natsu fight some man named Gajeel, both of them were dragon slayers and gave one another quite the pounding, it was the scariest thing of her life apparently, he shared a knowing look to Fu who chuckled.

Thankfully he was pulled away, although it was rather harshly no one dared to stop the action, he was spun on his feet and forced to face Erza, a worried look on her face again, before he could even remind her what he said again she lifted a hand up to stop him, "Why are you here?"

He looked at her in confusion, reaching through his pockets and pulled out the scroll, handing it to her, watching her eyes widen on each line, finally she slowly rolled it up with a look of disbelief, "Jiji told me to return when everything was sorted, so now I am here... is there a problem with that?" He tilted his head to the side with a confused look on his face.

A wide smile spread across Erza's face as she quickly shook her head, "No... its good to have you back Naruto," She moved forward slowly and gently hugged him, having seen how injured he was previously she didn't want to open up anything that might not have healed fully.

"Hey don't baby me just cause I only just woke up, I can still probably kick your ass again!"

"Baka you ruined the moment!" He was on the receiving end of a kick to his shin causing him to jump in shock.

Once the duo settled down a little he rubbed the back of his head, "I guess I should go see Jiji, see whether he will take me back or not."

"That would be for the best Naruto." She replied quickly with a sharp nod.

"OI ANYONE SEEN A GNOME FOR A MAN AROUND?!" He called out through the guild causing more than a few heads to snap in his direction. It was then that he noticed a rather large shadow coming over him, it stomped down hard and shaken the earth.

"What you stomping on Jiji?" A voice spoke next to Makarov's ear, he looked over in shock to see the blonde standing right behind him, he looked at his boot then back to the blonde confusion clear as day, "I am super fast. But yeah anyway, take a look at this." He smiled and handed the paper over the the master, getting the same reaction as he did from Erza.

* * *

Naruto and Fu stood side by side, each having a long tail extending from behind them holding onto a wooden beam, with his body currently topless his newly reprinted scarlet mark was clear on his right pectoral. A mint-green one visible on Fu's left arm, once everything had been explained and people started to feel a bit better about her being around, she found Fairy Tail a pretty interesting place to be.

Chomei had apologized to Naruto who shrugged it off, he said he would have done the same thing had the roles been reversed.

Erza stood behind the duo and instructed them on where to place the wooden beams, they would then wait for someone to nail them in place before moving onto the next ones, currently they were building the foundation for a design that Mira had come up with.

More than a few members of Fairy Tail were actually too scared to come near the two Fallen Slayers, having seen their fight and the damage that could have caused on the ground gave them a certain feeling of fear. Having Erza alongside them really did little to ease their worries, it was like putting three monsters together and waiting for them to fight over a piece of meat.

Naruto's nose twitched and the soft sound of footfalls reached his ears, he slowly turned around and saw Loke holding onto what seemed like a key pouch, "Those Lucy's?" His question came out relatively quickly and precise as they carried her scent.

"Yeah, I spent a great deal of time looking for them, can you give them to her Naruto?"

"It isn't my place, I hardly know the girl, but I will make sure she gets the keys... ever feel like spilling your secret?" The blonde taunted to which Loke gave a small chuckle.

"Ever going to tell Erza that you smoke?"

The statement caused Naruto to pale, he had been timing things so well as to hide the fact from her over the past day, but really even just people talking about it made he want to have one, he could feel his packet taunting him inside of his jeans, rubbing against his leg and constantly reminding him they were there.

With a heavy sigh he left the company of Loke, it was not an easy task for Naruto to find out what he was, a lot of cross-referencing and comparing images but he finally got his answer, the way he stuttered when Naruto had first questioned him about it made it all too clear.

"Hey Erza," The Scarlet mage in question turned around at his call with a look of confusion, it turned to realization when he held his hand up dangling the pouch in his hand, "Think you can take these to Lucy?"

"Yes, will you join me?"

"I hardly know her, her keys are a kind of big deal aren't they? So it wouldn't make sense for me to be there, it would be the same if someone returned one of your swords. You would still be thankful even if a stranger brought it to you, but it would mean so much more if a friend brought it correct?" He honestly had no idea if people felt that way, inwardly he just needed some time away from her for the moment, she had been watching him like a hawk and it was starting to get a little unnerving.

"I suppose you are correct, Natsu, Gray let's go." The boys had no say in the mater and the group rushed off, Naruto let out a relieved sigh and reached deep into his pockets, his hand drew the packet out and flicked one into his mouth, he shook it a few times and found a small hand reaching in to take a stick from it, a smile on her face.

"So these are what that funky smell was?" Fu questioned as she stuck one in her mouth, "They don't smell like normal smokes..."

"That's because their not, a blend of magic and science, more addictive than you could imagine, but they fill my reserves faster than anything else," The blonde informed and gave a relived sigh as he lit it and took a deep breath in.

He held his lighter out for her to use, "Be careful though, it feels really strange the first few times."

"You didn't seem too worried about my health when you were kicking me through the castle a few days ago," A chuckle leaving her throat as she took the lighter, her eyes widening in shock as she breathed in dropping to her knees and coughing loudly.

"Eh I warned you, but did you listen? No, therefore it is your own fault, now suffer Bug."

"STOP CALLING ME BUG!" Fu managed to yell between coughs and glared intently at the blonde

"Make me!" Challenged Naruto with a smirk on his face, her control would be all over the shop right now, this would be too easy.

"NO!" Both heads snapped around to look at the master who had a scared look upon his face, "You two are _not_ fighting in the guild, EVER!"

"Aww, but Jiji fighting in guilds is classy... not like fighting in a hospital."

"Yeah nothing really feels right when you start blowing them up" Fu spoke in agreement with the blonde.

A twitch found its way to Makarov's eyebrow, "I don't care where you two fight, just not near my guild, I do _not_ need to see a vortex summoned on top of it, least of all while it is being rebuilt."

"You need to loosen up Jiji, it's not like we are going to go flat-out every time we fight," Naruto leaned back in his stance, shifting all of his weight to his back leg while Fu mimicked his action's.

"Is he always this tense?" Fu asked the blonde who would know the man better than her.

"Normally he is worse, this is one of his good days." Naruto answered plainly for her.

"Ahh, that explains a bit."

"Don't talk about me like I am not here?" The master spoke having had enough of being pushed out of the limelight.

"Why not?" Both slayers questioned turning to face the master with looks of confusion on their face.

Makarov paled taking in the scene before him "D-don't ever do that again," He quickly pleaded to the duo.

"Don't do what?" The duo questioned again at the same time, "We can't stop doing what you don't want us to do unless you tell us ya know?" Everything was spoken in perfect sync, they even removed their smokes from their mouths at the same time, if he had to make a guess he would say even the plumes they released were the same... it was all too much for the master and he fell over on the ground.

Fu crouched down beside Makarov and poked him a few times with her finger, "Do you think he is dead?"

"Doubtful, Jiji is more than likely just pretending this is some awful dream he can wake up from... there is a chance we may have overdone it," Naruto responded clearly giving a small sigh once he was done.

"Debatable, we could have always taken it further just to see what happened?"

"Not today Fu, not today."

* * *

Erza had returned with Team Natsu, Lucy in tow as well, apparently she had run back to her hold home to speak to some ghosts, and have a few words of choice with her father. Master Makarov was called into a trail regarding the Guild War that had broken out between Fairy Tail and Phantom Lord.

Naruto saw no point in it seeing as the majority of them were just in the town a few days ago, but alas he would never be able to figure out the minds of a politician, nor did he want to... some things were just best left alone and this was one he deemed fit into that list.

Rumor had it that the mission board would be up again today, this was the reason Naruto was currently stretching on his way to the guild. Imagine his surprise when he walked in to see Laxus currently handing out insults to those around the guild.

Natsu charged forward to attack Laxus and Naruto moved fast to grab his fist, coming face to face with the other blonde slayer, "Enough, both of you are in the wrong."

"Ahh, the precious Prince has returned to save you all, what a touching story," The lightning user all but sneered at Naruto.

Naruto pushed Natsu back and gave a small yawn, "Oi Bug Zapper, just cause you are still waiting for your prince charming doesn't mean you have to be hurting all the time... or do I need to remind you how our last bout ended," Naruto slowly raised his hand and let purple scales covering it as he cracked his knuckles, "If you have a problem with how our family acts, then lets settle this as the two older siblings ne?"

Laxus turned on his feet and laughed, "Like always Naruto is the only one that will openly stand against me... when I inherit this guild things will change, weaklings will be expelled and the same will be dealt to those that stand against me. I'll make the ultimate guild! The Strongest guild in history that no one can look down upon!"

"The guild will never be turned over to someone who thinks that way, stop being a brat Laxus, or do I have to pound my point into you like always?"

The statement from Naruto had both blondes glaring at one another, the air in the Guild was tense and no one dared speak lest the aggression be turned onto them. Naruto's fight from not long ago was still fresh in their minds, would such an event break out right in the middle of their currently being built guild hall?

A metal hand rested on his back, Naruto continued to glare forward though, as if tempting Laxus to make a move, "Naruto, just let it go..." The Fallen slayer listened to the plea and slowly brought his hands down, letting the scales fall away from them.

"Oh, how the mighty have fallen, you listen to _Erza_ now?"

"Cause he listens to someone has a better grasp on the situation makes him less than what he was?" A voice chimed from behind him revealing it to be Fu, she gave a bright smile before hardening her gaze on Laxus, "I can't believe you are Laxus, Naruto told me a bit about you... but honestly from his stories I expected someone well... more."

The blonde dragon slayer widened his eyes at the girl who was able to sneak up on him "Who the hell are you?" He hissed out at her, she stood unflinching.

"Names Fu, second Fallen Slayer of Fairy Tail, now fuck off you are spoiling the mood around here," Her voice would suggest that it was a joke, but Laxus could feel the intent behind her eyes, she was being serious in what she said.

Not to mention she was like Naruto, the pesky blonde that was always there to knock him down, "Whatever... I am tired of being surrounded by weaklings anyway," His body turned into lightning and he vanished into the air.

Fu looked at Naruto with a questioning gaze, "So that's the Laxus you told me about?" A quick nod for her question, "He seems cute can I keep him?"

"Bug you have some serious issues."

"My name is Fu USE IT!"

"Bug!"

"ENOUGH!" Both heads snapped around to see a harsh glare from Erza directed at them, "Team Natsu is tacking a request together... can I hope to see the Guild in this shape or better when we return?" The two fallen slayers quickly nodded their heads, "Good, we shall talk more when we return Naruto." It was with those words that she left, Team Natsu forming up at the gates.

"Wow, she really is scary when she wants to be."

"You haven't seen anything yet... so should we do a mission?" The blonde pondered out loud as team Natsu left down the road, smiling and laughing like nothing had even happened.

Mirajane popped up beside them catching the slayers by surprise at her rapid and unneeded quick movements, "Master says you need to stay until he gets back, without Erza around there is no one to hold down the fort," Her cheery demeanor was not exactly helping this time, "Master said that if he is away then one of the S-class mages has to remain in the guild or things could get out of hand!"

The blonde nodded his head a few times, before he finally was able to capture something with his train of thought, "But you're an S-rank Mira," A deadpan expression on his.

"Muuu, not anymore... I sort of lost my powers, it's not that important though so don't worry!" She beamed brightly trying to push the subject under the rug quickly.

"Well if it is keeping me here, I guess it is important to me... lets talk about it over some drinks and see what comes to mind?" He offered his hand which Mira took and giggled cutely the duo walking over to the bar and being served by Maki, a short purple haired girl who was an up and coming wood-make user.

"I take it you hit the wall with your Satan Souls?" The statement from Naruto caused a very slow and suspicious nod to come from Mira, how would he know about something like that? "Parts of my magic are similar, you're scared... you can't be scared when you use magic, you have to embrace it."

"It's not as simple as you make it sound, I feel so evil and dirty, like I just want to destroy everything... I don't want to be like that," Mira's head sunk down a little as she looked at the drink in her hand, her own reflection looking back at her with disappointed eyes.

Naruto rose a brow at her for a moment, a small chuckle escaping from his lips shortly after as he saw her pulling nasty faces into her drink, "It is Mira, you just have to come to terms with the fact that those emotions are actually part of what we feel, the form you saw me in during the battle of Phantom Lord is my strongest so far, when I enter it I feel rage and pride like you would not believe, I turn my rage towards my enemies and my pride towards my nakama knowing they will be alright... don't fight the emotions, just give them something else to focus on."

The oldest Strauss sibling rose her head and looked at the blonde, she really didn't have anything to lose, "I guess I can give it another shot?"

"Let me finish my drink and I will come with you, I want you to go as hard as you can, I will be there to hold you down if you lose control." The blonde smiled and tipped his drink up feeling the warm liquid pour down his throat leaving a small sting behind.

"Wait are we going to be training or?" A small blush crept over Mira's features, she still enjoyed the memory of herself and Naruto in the cave from time to time, there was just something about the way he had held her so forcibly that excited her.

"Training, wait... you were thinking about your examination again weren't you?" Naruto taunted and poked his tongue out at her.

"W-was not!" Stammered out the white-haired mage and she gave a huff stepping off her stool and taking a few steps forward, looking back at the blonde when she saw he hadn't moved, "Well your drink is done, are you coming or not?!"

* * *

It was done, Mira had awakened her magic again after some choice words in her new form she switched back, apparently telling a blonde that you are going to tie him up and have your way with him was a really crude was to but an abrupt stop to a conversation.

What didn't make it any better were the whispers about the duo as they walked back to the guild, murmurers that swapped between what people thought of Naruto and the fact that two of the top 20 mages were now dating... Naruto was ready to just go out and do a mission, the joy that crossed his face as he saw the master walking into the guild was visible and could nearly bring a smile to anyone's face.

"Ahh Naruto, just the brat I wanted to see!" The older man cheered and managed to wipe away any joy that the blonde had.

A groan came from his mouth and he smacked his palm to his head, "What do you need Master?"

"I need you to take Fu out on a mission, show her the ropes and that ki-"

"Already planned on it Master... oh also you may want to add Mira back onto the active roster," Naruto replied cheerily thinking he was going to be asked for something much worse.

Makarov rose a brow at the last little piece, looking towards Mira who cupped her cheeks and nodded cutely, "Yep, Naruto helped me get a grasp of my magic again... I just need to stretch my reserves a little and I will be back to shape in no time."

"Well it seems like you have thought of everything once again Naruto, maybe I should just retire and let you take over the guild." It was clearly said as a joke but Mira agreed and Naruto paled, he remembered having to pay for damages from his time in Kakura and they were much less destructive than Fairy Tail, not to mention the amount of paper work that would involved.

It all finally caught up with Naruto and he promptly fell unconscious smacking his head against the pavement and cracking it, "N-no Natsu, not another town," He murmured his hands moving in a clawing action like he was trying to grab something.

"I think you may have found his weakness Master."

"Who would have thought that the blonde hates responsibility... can you carry him Mira?" Makarov gave a small chuckle, finally he had a card to play against Naruto, Mira gave a strong nod and huffed as she picked him up and carried him over her shoulders, he was a lot heavier than he looked, she turned to look at his face and screamed, Kuraja was looking at her intently hanging out of Naruto's mouth, it actually explained a little why he was so heavy.

Her hands were swatted away by the snakes tail as he lifted Naruto onto his back and slithered alongside the two white-haired mages, both of which were a little freaked out by the snake, it was finally Makarov that spoke up though, "Do you get larger each time I see you Kuraja?" He got a blank almost death stare from the snake and kept his mouth shut until reaching the hall.

Sure Naruto was scary when he wanted to be, but that snake of his... Makarov was sure it could scare Zeref himself if it wanted to. It was like 40 ft long for crying out loud, how it fit in Naruto's body was forever remain a mystery to him.

The snake let out a long hiss, "I know Kuraja, but he is old his meat wouldn't be any good," groaned out a very sleepy Naruto to their confusion, not sure if he was still out of it, or just pretending to be to fuck with them.

A vicious smile married Mira's face, one the master knew all too well, "I'll tell Erza you said that Naruto~" She chimed in a sing-song voice, watching as the blonde flopped around on the large snakes back.

"Don't do that, she will get angry... I don't like seeing her angry it's almost as bad as seeing her cry." Okay he was definitely still asleep, normally he would have just said something back much worse if he was awake, "I like her smile though... it feels warm, like what home should feel like."

"Ok Mira, I think that is enough teasing of the brat."

"Don't call me a brat you old geezer..."

"I am trying to defend you." Makarov tried to reason with him, never once seeing how idiotic it must have been for anyone else in the area.

Naruto sat up and rubbed some sleep from his eyes giving a small yawn before glaring coldly at the Master, "If you dare retire I will make sure Natsu and Gray are your butlers for life..."

"You wouldn't..."

"I would!"

The two had a small stare off that was abruptly broken off when Makarov ran into a pole, Naruto rolled back onto Kuraja and laughed while Mira covered her mouth and gave a small giggle, Makarov stood up slowly rubbing his head and frowned, "You did that on purpose brat!"

"I wish I did!"

"What did you do now Naruto?" Questioned Fu as she fluttered just overhead with a wide smile on her face.

"Nothing Bug. He did it to himself."

"My name is Fu!"

"No it is Bug!"

* * *

**PA: In my defense I like Fu, she has spunk or at least I think she would if she were still alive! I just felt like she would fit in at Fairy Tail plus she didn't attack anyone other than Naruto, plus she took out Jupiter and Jose... not by choice but it still happened. So what did you think of the fight? It was probably pretty confusing for a bit, not to mention how the council suddenly flipped their opinion of Naruto after his fight above Magnolia *hint hint*. I shall see you all next update, till then:)**


	9. Chapter 9

**PA: Omg omg omg, I updated again... I have been rather distracted in my eternal pursuit of work. It now seems that I may have finally landed something which not only makes me happy but takes a great load off of my back and allowed my mind to run wild giving plenty of room for new ideas to flourish.**

**For those not into the sentimental stuff, possibly landed a job, big success, big load taken of mind, possibly updating with bright and new ideas.**

**Now onto responding to your reviews, I am really glad everyone likes Fu's nickname... it honestly seemed like the kind of thing this Naruto would do so yeah. The council is hesitant to move against Naruto now, they had heard whispers of his name in the underworld and after he came out into the open and displayed a portion of his strength they decided it would be better to let him continue what he was doing before everything got thrown down... this will be explained further on but it will hopefully stop some questions from probing your minds.**

**The Tower of Heaven arc... that is close... very close and there is going to be huge character developments, pasts coming into play and all that kind of jazz so it is a good thing to look forward to.**

**liger bomb: He has disowned the name 'Snake' for now and has taken on the title of 'The Fallen King'. I had thought of doing Hebi as it means snake, but I don't know what Mystic would be in Japanese... sorry.**

**artley9: Omakes, I haven't done one of those in ages... I really should look at getting around to doing another one at some point haha. **

**Cerulean Knight: Naruto isn't going to get bigger than what he already is (around the same height as Gildarts.) That would be just too much for poor Erza *perverted snicker* The density and his body make-up will change though. The thunder snake sounds rather interesting and I will have to look into it a fair bit more before I take a shot. The Akatsuki are going to be an issue bringing them in, I really want to because in all honesty they are badass, but like you said there aren't any bijuu and if I have them chase after Fallen Slayers then no Itachi... I will find something though don't you worry but any ideas would be warmly welcomed.**

**Kupo Prodigy: When 'it' finally happens you can expect fireworks and explosions everywhere as they shower one another in passionate and raw love. Namida is going to be huge but thinking of it like Samehada is not far from the truth... apart from the whole weird scale skin thing it has going on.**

**If you want to see more of Kuraja then you are going to love the coming chapters, there will be much more of the snake. Also I know where you are coming from as a smoker (I am one myself) and yeah it's a feeling that kind of just sticks with you constantly.**

**Guest: I am glad to hear what you thought, I knew not everyone would be thrilled with how the fight turned out but there are some reasons behind it, mostly Naruto is not a huge fan of killing. Yes I know he had to do that when he was working for the council but he only did so when it was absolutely needed. I wanted to use Fu as a means to gauge Naruto's power and so those of the guild could get an insight into what he was capable of, but in no way did he go all out.**

**hellfire45: Naruto is the around the same height as Gildarts.**

**megaslayer321: Your review actually paused me for a few minutes, I have to agree that Naruto can't fight all of the major battles otherwise it just is not believable, like you said. It has made me rethink a few battles and have to come up with new encounters but I have a plan now, thanks:)**

**Disclaimer: I own neither Naruto or Fairy Tail.**

* * *

Naruto's body bent backwards narrowly dodging a swipe from the creature in front of him. His mission with Fu was simple enough take out a group of rampaging minotaurs. Well simple enough for an S-rank, the only issue was that neither slayer knew the meaning of holding back, so naturally it was no shock when Naruto lurched back upright and let out a large black howl that tore away the woodland area around him and continued forward, towards the town of course in the standard Fairy Tail fashion.

Fu flew around in the air above him, letting out much smaller screeches to take down her targets, a strange scent filled the nostrils of Fu causing her eyes to widen before taking up higher into the sky, watching the blonde raise his hand as the last of the stragglers ran towards him, **"White Arts: March of the Dead!" **

She watched in awe as skeletal reptiles sprung from the earth and raced forward tearing through the last of the horde, he slowly lowered his arm and the skeletons receded into the ground like they were never there. She flew down to the ground creating a small cloud of dust as she landed and stalked over to the blonde who had a brow quirked at her, "How the hell do you know White Arts?" She practically screamed at him.

Naruto responded by picking at his ear and giving a small yawn, "Mind melding, all Fallen Slayers can do it, but it can be pretty risky... I would advise against it at your current level," He cracked his shoulders and looked at the animals around them, their job was done here.

"What do you mean my level, I was fighting even with you like a week ago!"

" *tsk* I knew white arts back then... but I can't control how much damage it does so it was better not to use it while we were above my home town... don't you agree?" The blonde explained simply, Fu found it... acceptable, until she noticed that he was mostly just hoping she would get out-of-the-way in time, or he simply didn't care if he hit her. Naruto saw that yelling and screaming was about to happen again, he really needed to find some male friends, "I used a land base attack, you are an air based combat fighter... the chances of the attack hitting you were slim... not to mention that I trust in your ability to move out-of-the-way."

"You are an ass sometimes..."

"Just wait until we get paid, then you will be thanking me Bug."

"MY NAME IS FU!"

Naruto let out a small chuckle but gave her an offhanded wave as he headed back to the town. The minty-haired girl stomping her feet after him.

* * *

"How does one manage to level half a town?" Makarov whined out, Fu and Naruto had returned a few moments ago and given their mission summary.

Naruto had a beer mug in his hands while a smoke hung from his smiling face, Fu had a pout held firm and was giving the blonde a wide birth, he was able to infuriate her like no other.

"One of them nearly touched my jacket, then I went to let out a howl but forgot to reduce the amount of magic that I use for it, next thing I know boom big explosion. There was a little more fighting then we finished the mission... it really wasn't worthy of being an S-class but eh the pay was well even after we had to pay for repairs," A large cloud of smoke left his mouth as the doors to the guild were kicked open and Natsu stomped in a victorious smirk on his face.

Apparently team Natsu had been in a play while he was on his mission with Fu, it took him a few seconds too long to remember that Erza was a part of that team and he felt a rather heated glare coming from the entry way, his eyes darted down to the stick that hung limply from his mouth and back up to her.

He watched her make her way over her eyes burning with rage, thinking quick he used the one card that would always get him out of trouble, "Oi Natsu, how about we have that spar you wanted?" The rose-haired mage looked up and gave a toothy grin.

"Sure but I am going to win this time!"

Hook line and sinker, he could always count on Natsu to get him out of trouble, even if the kid didn't mean it. Naruto flew across the floor and landed with an arm around Natsu neck as the two walked out of the guild, nearly starting their spar before they even opened the doors.

Erza sunk her head in defeat, she couldn't just pull him away from his spar with Natsu. It just wouldn't sit right with her, instead she moved to the bar only to see Mira walk away appearing again moments later with cake in hand, "If you didn't always try to scold him he might stick around longer you know?" Informed the white-haired barmaid with a gentle smile stretching over her face.

"I know... but I feel as if it is the only time he will listen to me," Erza's head sunk a little further, admitting the fact seemed to only make it that much harder to stomach. Lucy sat down next to the girls with a small huff.

"Why does Natsu have to always go run off and be... well Natsu?"

Erza turned to give her a deadpanned looked, "Be thankful that he doesn't get called away on wild and crazy missions for the magic council, only to get back and want to act like a child so he can relax for a little bit before being called into work again."

"If we are talking about Naruto, he doesn't seem to act like that much of a child... maybe you are just looking at things a little too harshly Er-"

"You don't know what you are talking about Lucy... drop it!" Bit out the scarlet swords woman causing the blonde to flinch back and nod in agreement. This side of Erza was really scary, thankfully her attention was pulled away when the ground shook and the snake that had been invisible around her shoulders came into view and flicked his tongue out into the air.

"Master Improving... little magic scent..." Erza had spent the time to learn to understand Kurama, unlike Naruto who seemed to just keep guessing until he got it right... it happened more often than they would care to share, but anyway, Kurama had just told her that Naruto was able to make the ground shake without pushing out huge levels of magic, which was a feat not even Laxus was capable of.

Erza bit at her lip and looked at her hands, "Go, you know he is normally pretty happy after a spar." Mira gave her the final push she needed. Erza gave a stiff nod and walked out of the guild leaving a shocked Lucy just staring at her back.

"You'll have to forgive her but she is right. Naruto is someone you don't know at all... even I hardly know him, but he and Erza knew one another before they joined Fairy Tail... he is also a very touchy subject with her so it is best just to not talk about him okay?"

Lucy nodded absently to Mira's words, barely even noticing when Lisanna sat down next to her and started to speak about her last mission with Elfman, it was a strange relationship the two had, both seemed to have an interest in the young dragon slayer but neither had it within them to make the first move.

On the other hand, Erza made it quiet clear to Mira that she was not welcome and that Naruto was not a fight she would walk away from.

* * *

**"Fire Dragon's Roar!" **Naruto watched the spiraling flames burn towards him feeling more eyes slowly focusing onto the duo, with a cocky smile he leapt to the side just in time to avoid being hit by the spell, his body defying gravity and suddenly starting to rotate in mid air before bringing his heel crashing down to the ground.

Natsu rolled to the side as earth and rock flew into the sky, his fists alight, shooting off a burst of flames from his wrists Natsu stopped his rolled and launched himself forward, the blonde shuffled up and stood tall, raising his foot as Natsu came and effortlessly holding the slayer at bay.

A thought suddenly rushed through Naruto's mind as he stood there holding them both in place, "Normally when we do this if you win I have to come back to Fairy Tail... but now that I am here what do you want for me to wager?"

He used Natsu's head as a push off point and flipped backwards sending the young slayer back as well, Naruto landed firmly while Natsu slid back a few meters both looking across at one another with a small smirk twitching at their lips, "That's easy... if I win you join Team Natsu."

The blonde didn't even raise a brow. He was used to Natsu's strange proclamations and in fact found them rather interesting to say the least... but showing emotion towards it would let the pink-haired mage know they had an effect on him, "If I win, you owe me a favor... like normal."

"I don't get why you always wager that when you never cash it in," Natsu had a confused look on his face while Naruto just rolled his shoulders.

"I will one day, until then I guess I will just stockpile them, now come show me the strength of your flames," Taunted the blonde waving his hand in a 'bring it' manner. He didn't have to tell Salamander twice as his fists became encased in fire and he rushed forward tearing up the ground behind him.

Naruto tore his jacket from his body and charged forward his hands quickly being covered in red scales and grabbing onto the burning fists of Natsu, watching the shock that slowly turned to fear spread across his face, "H-how aren't you being burnt?"

"Fire Wyvern's have a very high resistance to flames... it hurt more than you could imagine trying to stomach this one but I think it was worth it in the end. The natural resistance I gained from it is more than enough against most fire mages, but yours burn pretty hot. So it's just safer to activate the scales don't ya think?" The blonde gripped tightly onto Natsu's hands before tossing him into the air and leaving his right hand up, **"Pulse."**

A purple shock-wave shot out and impacted with Natsu lifting him further into the air and causing him to grit his teeth, the rose-haired dragon slayer spun around in the air and looked down at the blonde, watching his left hand slowly raise into the air and point in his direction while his eyes stayed trained in front. **"Shock-wave." **

The eyes that were watching widened as a black blast exploded behind Natsu sending him flying back towards the ground, Natsu didn't panic like those watching. Instead he took a deep breath in and brought he hands in front of his mouth, a bright orange magic seal forming in front of him as he breathed in even deeper seemingly inflating his chest and stomach to crazy proportions as he continued to fall towards the ground, **"FIRE DRAGONS ROAR!" **

The almost primal scream rang heavy through the clearing as white-hot flames crashed down onto the ground and slowed his decent, he ended his spell just before impact and tucked himself into a roll that sprung off the ground and let him flip back onto his feet.

Erza watched with widened eyes, Naruto was teaching Natsu... it all finally started to make sense to her, Natsu's rapid improvements had been the reactions from these 'spars'. While most would not be able to pick up on the actions from the subtle ways they were performed it was clear to her... Natsu was starting to mimic Naruto's style of fighting, part of her wondered if Natsu even knew he was doing such a thing, she let out a small gasp when Naruto's eyes snapped over to her boring right into hers before turning back to look at Natsu.

She had sworn she was well hidden, at least to the fact that he wouldn't be able to pick up on her presence while he was fighting against Natsu... it would appear she underestimated the blonde and that in itself scared her, the expectations she held for him were already very high but he seemed to just push that bar ever higher.

"Have you caught your breath back yet Natsu?" Quipped the blonde tilting his head to the side and bouncing up onto the ball's of his feet, Natsu taking deep breaths but giving a nod and steadying himself and slowly evening out his breaths.

"Hehe, I'm ready bring it," Natsu lowered his stance a little and Erza rose a brow in question of the move, the Natsu she was watching now was different from anything she had seen before, his eyes were focused and clear his mind was truly on the fight and the smile on his face showed he was enjoying the feeling. The flames he used before were also more powerful than the ones she had seen him use before, Natsu was definitely stronger than she gave him credit for... maybe her assessments had been wrong for the slayers?

Naruto cracked his shoulder into place and let out a small laugh, "Okay, keep up now, I don't want to scrape you off the bottom of my boots... they cost too much," Naruto vanished in a blur and Natsu was just able to bring his arms up in time to block the fist that came down and pushed the ground out away from them showing just how much force was behind the punch and just how much strength Natsu's arms held.

**"Pulse." **The call caused Natsu's eyes to go wide as the purple shock-wave appeared between him and Naruto and exploded sending only him back, he looked over to Naruto and saw that he had grown a tail and dug it into the ground to keep himself from moving, he ripped it from the ground pulling up a large chunk of land and flicked it towards Natsu, **"Pulse." **

It's movement was sped up and Natsu found he was really starting to get tired of the blondes new skill set, the lump of earth was all he could see in his view and he planted his feet harshly on the ground and covered his fists in flames rearing them back ready to strike at the boulder, it was only when a soft **"Shock-wave," **drifted through the clearing did his eyes widen, he had lost vision of the blonde.

Natsu braced for the blunt impact on his back but it never came, the boulder was upon him and he did the only thing he could and brought his hands forward feeling them connect with the earth only for it to shatter... only not from his side.

Naruto had used his shock-wave to speed him up and send him flying forward towards Natsu, his fist broke through and his tail quickly swatted away one of the fists from Natsu while his leg quickly wrapped around the other holding it in place and allowing him to land two quick jabs on the rose-haired slayer before his body shifted and his legs wrapped around Natsu's waist and flipped him over and sent him crashing into the ground.

The blonde lazily shook his head causing his braid to sway back and forth while he was upside down with his hands supporting his weight. His legs came undone from Natsu and he switched back to standing upright quickly dusty himself off and looking at the downed form of Natsu for a few moments before slowly walking up and resting his fingers against the boys neck checking for a pulse, he was still alive which was good, the move was pretty risky but it was one of the only ones he could use there.

Naruto let out a small sigh but widened his eyes as he saw Natsu's snap open and the pink-haired slayer rush forward to trap him and place him in a hold instead putting flames over the both of them slowly burning away at the blondes skin.

Natsu felt the strong tail of Naruto wrap around his body and hold it tight slowly squeezing it and making the young slayer bit down on his lip so he didn't roar out in pain, the next phrase though caused his eyes to widen and his mind to start cursing, **"Pulse," **By now Natsu knew that these spells did next to no damage at all which was good but also bad at the same time, good because well he didn't get hurt, but bad because if it wasn't a huge flashy spell it probably didn't even dent the blondes reserves.

The purple attack formed between the two slayers and launched them apart only for Natsu to be flung off to the side afterwards by the tail that was still holding him strong.

Sadly, or thankfully depending on the side you were on, Naruto had foregone wearing his fireproof clothing today, so in normal anime fashion he was clad in only a pair of baggy white pants showing off his chiseled body which made some of the eyes watching the duo's spar grow rather hungry as he brushed his hair out of his face and the burn marks on his body faded away.

He had to give kudos to Natsu, the little punk had managed to destroy most of his clothing... a feat not many were capable of, he looked over and saw him crawling out of the hole he had been smashed into with a smile on his face as he wiped away some blood that was trailing from his mouth, "I am going to have to go buy a new outfit now," The blonde held his hand out over the ground causing it to rumble and groan for a moment before a large stone throne came out of the ground causing many to wonder what he was planing.

"What kind of man are you? Complaining about clothes and stuff, they are meant to get dirty you know?" Natsu taunted standing upright and cracking his back and shoulders back into place.

Naruto moved closer to the stone throne and punched his fist through it causing it to shatter apart and leave a purple and grey great-sword in place which the blonde took a hold of and rested on top of his right shoulder, his large wings sprouted from his back and spread out wide giving a strong flap flicking up dusty around him as he moved his free left hand across his body and makes a small dusty cyclone before quickly dispelling it, "I like to look good when I kick ass... is that a crime?" The blonde reasoned.

Natsu just looked at the winged-slayer for a few moments, "Dang, never thought of it like that, now that I think about it, is that something that is needed for an S-class mage?" The question actually caused a few people to think about it, every one of their s-class mages looked like a bad ass when they fought... maybe that is what made an s-class mage and not skill alone?

"Eh maybe, but being a strong fighter along with being able to come up with a decent plan will help... for example; one of the members of your team uses magic weapons and armour... from what you have seen so far of my weapon what do you think its properties are?" The blonde mused watching the rose-haired slayer widening eyes, "See the fact that I could be using a magical blade didn't even cross your mind, let alone the fact that I could just be bluffing to throw you off your game. An S-class mage needs to be strong overall not just in battle... this is why it is able for you to go toe to toe with some S-class mages and still pull out on top... fighting might not be where the majority of their strength lies."

Naruto raised his free hand and brushed his braid behind his ear and gave a cocky smile which could easily melt hearts if directed in the right places, "I cover all bases for what a mage should strive for... this you already know of course. When I have to I can manipulate my opponents line of thought, my strength and speed are up there with some of the best and the rate at which I can cast my spells, not to mention my reserves are high as well. While this may not come out the best... Laxus is the closest to my skill set, this is another reason why we are always butting heads our styles both focus around the same thing."

"Using the speed of your strikes and spells to amplify their strength?" Questioned Natsu as he kept weary eyes on Naruto, he knew that the blonde was crazy fast with his wings out and the extra stability he could provide with that tail not to mention its use of a weapon as well, Naruto's words seemed to run through his head even harsher now, he really was a well rounded mage, if this wasn't a spar Natsu would have to hope that his teammates were nearby.

"Correct, but now I am starting to get bored so I am just going to finish this up real quick, k?"

No time was given for a response as Naruto tore across the field, Natsu jumped back just as the blonde swung the large stone sword around in a circular motion causing sharp rocks to shoot out of the ground like spears around him blocking his form from view.

Natsu took deep breaths as the speed of the battle just increased to a level he wasn't used to, it made his spars against Erza seem slow. The stone spears slowly receded back into the ground only to show they were surrounding empty space, Natsu was on high alert when a hand clamped down on his shoulder, "Yo..." Came the voice of Naruto as Natsu's head slowly turned to face the blonde seeing the expressionless face on the Fallen-slayer's face.

Naruto spun once again, but this time the duo were too close for Natsu to be able to dodge, a quick punch lifted the dragon-slayer into the air before a tail slap struck him back down right into a kick to finish the combo, effectively launching Natsu across the field and sending him crashing into the treeline but never breaking it.

"You put up a good fight this time, be proud of that Natsu and let's do this again when you get even stronger... you are advancing quickly," The blonde tossed his stone blade into the air, slowly raising his now free right hand and clenching it tight reducing the blade to dust and pebbles as it fell back to the ground, his wings and tail shrinking back into his form as he placed his braid back into place, "Did you all see what you needed too?"

Naruto's question was met by the forms of Fairy Tail members walking out of the trees each holding a different look, some held admiration, other concern and some were just shocked at the display of strength between the two and how easily Naruto dispatched of one of their stronger mages, "I believe we did, but we all know Natsu wouldn't have let you leave unless you knocked him out, for now though I believe we all deserve a warm drink, I think I feel a bit of a storm coming." The words come from none other then Erza.

Naruto looked up into the sky and could see the dark clouds speeding towards them and finally feeling the chill that hung around in the air, "I'll see you back at the guild, I need to get changed," He stuck his hands into his pockets and walked away missing the disapproving look that his decision caused from a certain redhead.

* * *

His hands were buried deep in his pockets as his blonde hair whipped around in the wind. His high collared jacket keeping the majority of the wind from his face as he made strides towards Fairy Tail.

Naruto now wore white Samurai style pants with black flames around the cuffs, the material was fairly heavy and he found them rather comfortable meaning that they would be good for a cold night, a skin-tight black long-sleeved top could barely be seen from under his long white jacket.

He had been two steps ahead of the rain that fell behind him for the majority of his trip, this only changed when he entered the courtyard of the Guild looking up at the large hall that had just finished its construction. Apparently Kuraja had been a large help with the task, the snake just found in convenient to have his prey always return to the same place... poor Happy, it would seem that Kurama had managed to convince his father to help in hunting the blue cat.

The thought caused Naruto to give a small laugh as he approached the doors to the guild and found them flung open as a redheaded blur crashed into his chest sending them both to the ground landing with a solid thud.

Deep brown eyes met ice blue for a few moments before Erza quickly backed up, "N-n-naruto, I-I-I"

The blonde slayer raised a hand and gave a small laugh, "Take a deep breath and calm down Erza, there is no rush."

She did just that and fought down the mad blush that wanted to spew forth, "I-I was just coming to look for you, it was getting late and I didn't know if you were still coming or not..." The redhead trailed still looking away nervously.

"I said I would see you here, I always keep my word don't I?"

The words that came form the blonde seemed to fill her with question, it was now common knowledge that Naruto Uzumaki was used as a hitman by the magic council, it happened after she became 'a queen'... he had always returned thus far... yes he had kept his word, "Y-yes, I-I just wanted to make sure you weren't going to skip out, you have become rather different of late."

The rain continued to fall around them splashing the ground as Naruto moved a hand to remove the hair from his face, "We should get you inside before you catch a cold," The blonde spoke softly, bringing himself to stand and picking her up off the ground.

Erza didn't even have time to protest as she was dragged inside, nor did she really want to. It had been so long since she had been this close to the blonde, it allowed her to feel the strange emptiness that dwelled inside him once more, but hidden away in a dark corner was still that bright spark of life, the one that had stayed since they met in _that_ place so long ago.

She gave a small shiver when Naruto parted from her, one that Naruto saw and took off his long coat and wrapped it around her giving a small smile. Erza actually marveled at just how warm the coat was, inside was fur-lined but she could feel the small strips of metal that were used to reinforce the jacket. It was quite heavy but the quality of the piece more than made up for its weight.

Looking across the room she saw Naruto being dragged away by an already quite intoxicated Cana... apparently it was time for a drinking contest, Erza gritted her teeth, drinking was not a strong point for her but she already knew that Naruto was quite fond of the activity, thus she decided to enter, to show she could keep up with him through all of his 'adventures'.

Two glasses of wine, that was all it took to get the redheaded knight into her 'happy place'. Said happy place involved her in a cat-girl outfit stalking along the table in front of a blonde as he drank, the other guild members marveled at how less destructive this drunken Erza was compared to normal... some of the smarter ones were able to put two and two together.

Her hips swayed from side to side as she lowered her chest down to the table to give Naruto a view many would kill for, Erza pawed gently at his hand that was flat against the table causing him to raise a brow and turn to the acting feline, "Yes Erza-chan?" He breathed out smoothly causing her to pause momentarily before quickly starting up again.

Naruto didn't get any verbal kind of response causing him to let out a small sigh, "Eh you win this one Cana, don't go spending it all on booze ya hear?" Trailed the rather sober blonde as he put a large stack of jewel down on the table, the groggy Cana rose her mug slightly while her head stayed against the table, like many others from the guild... the perks of being a slayer... it was too easy to win at drinking games because his body burned the toxins of the alcohol out much to quickly for them to take a large affect, well apart from his binges with Bacchus but he doubted many could keep up with those.

Erza extended her head forward and stared at the blonde making him feel somewhat uncomfortable, "Are you okay Erza?" His question caused her to give a small nod and continue moving forward only to run out of crawl space and fall into the blonde's lap in a clumsy and awkward manner as she knocked him to the floor.

The redheaded knight shifted her body and rested her head against his chest hearing the rhythmic beat of his heart, it was able to stay even despite what was currently happening, a small yelp of surprise almost escaped her as large arms wrapped around her body holding her close, "What are you doing Erza?" Naruto mused looking down at the girl in his arms, her head slowly turned up and she quickly pressed her lips against his, causing the pairs cheeks to turn the same colour as her hair.

"Please," She all but pleaded looking up into his blue eyes, "For tonight let me pretend you're mine."

The words spoken by Erza managed to freeze Naruto on the spot, a dejected look came through her eyes and she tried to push herself off only to feel his grip around her tighten, "I-I was always yours Erza... there is no need to pretend." Naruto spoke calmly and the shine that returned to her eyes filled his chest with warmth as she buried her face into his shirt, feeling his toned chest that lay just beneath it.

"P-promise?" Hopefully she started to looked up at the blonde only to feel something warm press against her forehead.

Naruto backed away and gave a bright smile, "I promise Erza-chan, I'll be yours."

"About time you two," A cheery voice from the bar called, Mira was holding up another tray of drinks and food with a bright smile on her face that threatened to split it in two, "some of us were wondering if you guys would ever get together."

Erza lifted her head and looked towards Mira with a small pout, "Twas all baka-Naruto's fault. He is hardly ever around, when he is he is normally helping someone out with something... but that is the baka that I care about..." Trailed Erza as she flopped back down onto the blonde causing a small 'oomph' to come from his form, "hush now pillow."

Naruto moved to make fun of her, but seeing the content look that adorned her face, he just could not bring himself to disturb it, "Yeah I guess I am a baka huh?"

* * *

She squinted her eyes as the sun peered in through the window, the strangest thing was that her bed didn't receive window light, she jerked upright and her eyes quickly snapped around the room, last night was a complete blur she remembered entering a drinking contest then it all got fuzzy.

The door to the room started to open and Erza requiped a sword into her hand, not sure what to expect to come from the other side, "Oh your up?" Naruto commented through sleepy eyes as he held a plastic bag along with a tray of cups up into the air, "I went out and brought breakfast, figured you could use it."

She dispelled her sword but rose a brow in its stead, "W-where am I?" Erza managed to stutter out nervously... it really wasn't helping the fact that Naruto was standing topless with his hair in its normal mane sans the braid from all those years ago still hanging in place.

"My house, more specifically my room," Naruto answered calmly and saw Erza tighten her grip on the sheets only to find she was actually still clothed, "We didn't do anything, if that's what you are wondering?"

"Ummm, okay but what happened last night? Why can't I remember anything?"

"Lets just say you got very drunk Erza-chan, you put on a neko costume and tackled me to the ground, some words were exchanged and you fell asleep. When I tried to take you back to your apartment you wouldn't let me go and insisted that our 'cuddle time' as you put it was not over yet. Seeing as males are not allowed to stay the night at Fairy Hills I brought you back to me house, where you proceeded to empty your stomach of the 'devil's poison' as you called it and passed out when I was carrying you bed. Thus I cleaned you up and decided to grab us breakfast and coffee." Explained the blonde with a small smile as he put the cups down and passed some food over to the scarlet knight.

Erza nodded softly while trying her best to hide the embarrassment she felt, Naruto had taken care of her in that kind of state? "I'm sorry to have burdened you with something like that."

"Don't worry about it, I'm yours after all right? Or was that just the booze talking?" Questioned the blonde, not entirely sure if he was going to be pleased with the answer or not.

Erza put her head down and started to cry causing Naruto to panic, there were somethings that he was just not good with... people crying was one of them.

"I-I finally said it and can't even remember doing so?" She murmured out with a pout only to have her chin gently lifted into the air and soft lips press against hers, at first she was surprised beyond words, then she leaned in feeling herself drawn to the strange warmth that started to stir between them.

Naruto slowly parted and rested his forehead against her causing her to look into his eyes as he wiped the tears away from hers, "Please don't cry Erza-chan... I hate seeing your tears."

Erza gave a small sniffle before turning her pout into a small smile, "Okay, but I still feel bad about what I pushed onto you Naruto-kun."

"Don't you had a bit too much to drink that's all... think of it as you tested your limits last night, finding out how much you can handle before you should take a break," He whispered calmly and started to move away onto to feel a hand grab around his belt, "Erza-chan?"

"Cuddle time isn't over yet," A cheeky grin on her face as Naruto gave a playful laugh and put their food and drinks off to the side and laid down next to her, wrapping a protective arm around the scarlet mage as she cuddled up into his chest as she intertwined her legs with his, a wide smile on her face.

Naruto ran a large hand through her silky hair as a smile tugged at his face, "So do you really read 'adult novels' as you call them?" He felt her stiffen in his arms and look up at him, clearly nervous as to where this conversation was leading.

"I do... why?" She replied slowly and swallowed a lump that was growing in her throat.

"What do you think of the Icha Icha Series?"

* * *

Sometime later and on the other side of town, at the guild hall of Fairy Tail there was once again a scuffle. Neither Mira nor Fu were interested though, instead they sat at the bar talking... apparently Mira had some juicy information that the Fallen Slayer was trying to pry out of her, "You will find out when it happens, knowing him though it will be any minute now." A bright smile on Mira's face as she looked towards the large doors as they were opened and a large creak sounded through the hall freezing everyone in place.

Erza wore he knee-high boots and blue skirt, but instead of her normal armour she wore just a standard white button up shirt, this caught many by surprise but what really got them was when they traced her hand back to the large form of the towering blonde. He stood at the same height as the guilds ace Gildarts and could pull of a scary face just as easily.

The size difference could almost allow for Erza to pass as a school girl, but what stood out the most was the fact that for once Naruto was not clad in a jacket, he wore the same pants as the night before while opting to wear a sleeveless high collared white shirt as his mane of hair stretched out in every direction, strapped to his back was the re-sheathed Namida , "It's rude to stare you know?" He murmured out while the guild stared at them wide-eyed.

Lucy looked like a deer caught in headlights when the blondes piercing blue eyes snapped to her, "S-sorry it's just you guys are a rather scary couple is all," She flinched when Erza snapped her head over to the blonde and narrowed her eyes.

"I'm not that scary... at least I don't think I am... guys am I scary?" Naruto questioned looking rather confused at the situation, a few of the guild members gave subtle nods while Natsu and Gray stepped forward each cracking their knuckles.

"Tsk you are like a big teddy bear." The ice make user commented with an arrogant smile.

"For once I have to agree with the stripper, you're nothing special." Replied Natsu almost without missing a beat.

Naruto rolled his head from side to side and looked down towards Erza who had taken a thinking pose, "Team Natsu, lets see how we pile up against a Wizard Saint, in an extreme spar."

Lucy paled while Natsu and Grey both gave small grins, Naruto's face threatened to split in half and Erza gave a small smirk, something was telling her Naruto was much stronger than what he showed against Natsu and now would be the perfect time to see where he stacked up against what had become dubbed 'Fairy Tail's most destructive team'.

"Hitting Natsu always makes puts a smile on my face." His lips pulled back showing his snake-like fangs causing a few members to shuffle back.

*Scary*

Erza had been spot on, the blonde had been holding back drastically, while he didn't show much more than he did in the fight against Natsu, she could feel him pulling his punches each time they connected fists or blades.

Naruto had danced around them not a single strike came close to hitting him while he was dodging, each parry against her was timed so perfectly that it pushed her extraordinary foot work to its limits even managing to knock her around a few times because of it.

She watched as he sheathed Namida on his back and pulled a packet of cigarettes from his pocket, Erza felt her own and let out a groan, it was the packet she had taken from him before they even started the fight. They had been placed in the pocket that rested above her heart... which had been covered by armour the majority of the time, the action just added insult to her minor injuries, to make it worse, he didn't even change his form at all the entire spar, it really brought the large gap of their abilities to the forefront of her mind.

The group was quiet for a few minutes as Naruto quickly finished his smoke much to the ire of Erza who sent a small glare his way every time he exhaled, she didn't like the habit because of how sick it could make you... but then again the blonde was able to practically regrow his own arm... it was something she would need to think about more.

"You guys are each strong on your own account..." Lucy looked up in confusion at his words, she was definitely the weakest on the team by far and it was a fact that she knew very well, "but when you work together you are a load of crap, I am sorry if that came out harsh but its true, each of you is trying to do your own thing and hoping that the rest of the 'team' follows along, you are less of a team and more like four people who take requests together," Naruto gave a small sigh and placed his braid behind his ear.

"For example; Grey, Natsu and Lucy have a combination that only those three can preform yet they don't... this is because your focus is based around yourselves and not those around you, Grey makes ice, Natsu turns to water and Lucy uses it to summon Aquarius her most powerful spirit as of now, from there Grey wouldn't have to use the moisture in the air for his Ice make anymore as the water spirit would be able to flood the area while Natsu could use his flame magic to create huge amounts of steam to block the enemies view of the team, allowing it to regroup and come up with a different strategy... at least those are the kinds of things I would expect 'teammates' to do."

It came out harsh, really harsh but each of them knew he was right, "It's not all bad though, Lucy you are much stronger than you give yourself credit for, don't be afraid to join the fray, I saw you hesitate but when you joined you were able to pull your friends out of trouble, with some hard work and the right training you could easily become an S-ranked mage, Natsu and Grey... you both already have the strength but not the forethought for the position, think things through a little... I have some books that can help with that subject if you would like, I also think I have some books for summon type mages if you want to have a look through the Lucy?" The blonde questioned and informed the group, Erza narrowed her eyes noticing he had not said a single word about what he thought of her.

"Well I might swing by later and have a look if that is okay Naruto?" Questioned the smaller blonde to which the older one gave a small nod and the three turned away, "You coming Erza?"

"I'll be with you shortly." The scarlet knight spoke stiffly, Team Natsu gave a small wave as they hobbled away from the field, Naruto closed the small distance between them and crossed his arms over his chest, "I want to hear what you think... what you honestly think of my skills and how they go together with our group."

"They don't at all." He stated bluntly causing her to frown a little, "Natsu and you are sharing the same role at the moment, both being the front line fighter while Grey covers the middle ground and Lucy hangs in the rear summoning her spirits to fight for her, you have to be careful of their spells as a rogue fireball from Natsu could do serious damage if you were wearing the wrong armour... same as a strike of ice from Grey. Your skills with the blade seem a little rusty though in all honesty... have you not had anyone to spar against?"

Erza shook her head causing the blonde to sigh, "Also, something that isn't super important but I find helps, is to remove all emotion when you swing your blade, sure my face may have a smile or a frown on it but inside I feel nothing, I give away no hints as to where my strike will land nor how much force will be behind it. I can help you get your skills up to scratch if you want, also I am sorry if I offended you in anyway... but you wanted what I honestly thought." Finished the blonde as he dropped his arms down to the side before swinging them a little and scooping the redhead up and holding her bridal style.

"I can walk just fine thank you." She replied dryly before looking up at the smile on his face.

"I know, but I wanted to carry my queen. Is that so wrong?" He questioned feeling one of her arms wrap around his chest and pull herself a little closer.

She gave out a small sigh and sunk deeper into his arm, "No, I just am not good with surprise physical contact."

"I can put you down if you want?" The blonde questioned.

Only to revive a quick "Don't you dare." And the smile that he fell in love with the first time he saw it stretch across her face, she leaned her head against his chest and felt her eyes slowly close, "Don't you ever let go..."

* * *

Naruto and Fu sat up on top of one of the tables, their legs crossed and eyes closed as they seemed to be meditating, each had an aura glowing around them, Fu's was a small green one much like her hair, while Naruto's was huge and a nearly blinding white.

Apparently Naruto was teaching Fu how to talk to the souls trapped inside of her body, once she was able to master this stage she would be able to use them as a link to speak to the Fallen that once taught her.

With no other reaction from either of them Fu's arm started to raise to her mouth as it opened and bared fangs ready to sink into the flesh, her Aura started spiraling out of control. Her breathing became labored and when it looked like she was finally about to bite down she was blasted from the table and sen across the room by the white aura of Naruto.

The blonde's eyes slowly opened and the burning white that was in them started to die down, reverting back to their normal ice blue, "I told you not to form the link with yourself Bug, there was a reason why I decided to do this with you..." Trailed the blonde as he slowly stood to his feet. A long purple tail flying out from behind him and picking the small girl up from the ground.

Fu was panting heavily but managed to nod, to which Naruto pulled his tail back and let it go back into his skin, "I-it was just so tempting, they offered me things I didn't think possible... how do you handle it?" She questioned the blonde who gave a small sigh and brushed a few strands of hair from his face.

"I have learned that the best things are those that you work for. Nothing good is just given to you... I watched one of our kind sell his body and soul to gain power to fight. He was much stronger but he was no longer himself. Sometimes resisting temptation is the best thing you could do Bug," He gave a small sigh and just plopped himself down and gave a small laugh.

"I did learn one thing though!" Fu exclaimed causing the blonde to raise a brow, **"Living Shadow!"** A black skeletal figure crawled out of the ground and stood behind few.

Naruto let out a low whistle, that was followed by a chuckle as he watched Fu struggle to move her arms from the added wait of the Living Shadow.

"Okay you made controlling this thing look much easier than what it really is. It feels like I am wading through water... not to mention I feel the large drain its placing on me. Shit Naruto, how were you able to keep this up for so long?" Fu had started to sweat already and she quickly let the shadow fall into the ground.

The rest of the guild was deadly quiet, sure they had seen Naruto's shadow during the fight. But it was completely different seeing that magic so close, they had found a new respect for the small girl, and an ever increasing fear of the large blonde, they had caught glimpses of how fast he moved with it, not to mention the length he held it compared to the small girl.

"I have a Grimoire if you wish to have a read, I'm not quite finished expanding some of my learning's but there is a fair bit already contained," Naruto replied and received a small nod from Fu, it was a little known fact that Naruto actually had quite a large number of books, it would more than likely be a big shock for Team Natsu.

* * *

A whistle escaped Lucy, Natsu and Grey's mouths, Naruto's house as he called it was anything but. It was a monstrous mansion. Erza still wondered just how he was able to afford a place like this but then again he worked for the council for a time... they must pay really well.

The large doors were pushed open and Natsu was actually scared to enter, fearing he might break something really expensive. There were statues, paintings and weapons strewn out all through the halls while the tiles on the floor were almost clean enough to see your own reflection in them.

"How do you afford something like this... I can barely make rent each month," Whined Lucy causing the older blonde to chuckle.

"Before everything happened I used to have requests thrown at me from every direction, even after all that stuff went down with the council work kept coming my way and it always paid well, plus myself and Mystogan have been doing S-ranked missions for years now... we had quite a large sum already behind us before we even joined Fairy Tail. Don't worry you will get there one day, I'm sure of it. Maybe take a few solo missions every now and again to get your name out there though?" Naruto mused as he lead them down the halls and stopped in front of large double oak doors.

Naruto pushed them open without any effort and showed the large library to the teens watching their jaws drop, "Which section is your Grimoire located?" Questioned the shorter girl as she looked at the books with bored eyes, she had spent quite a bit of time in this room already.

"Its in the 'Slayer' section, it should still be out on the table." He informed and Fu took off quickly down the isles apparently already knowing where to go, seeing the looks of question from the group of teens he let out a small chuckle, "As you should know our magic is very, very old Natsu, a lot of people have the potential to use it but merely lack the knowledge in the subject. I feel as though by collecting all I can on the subjects inside my library I may be able to help someone one day, Slayers in particular as each type has so many differences."

They gave him small nods not exactly following his line of thinking, "Anyway come I'll show you the sections that I think you would be able to improve best in."

Once again Lucy was flawed when they entered her section, Naruto waved a hand and said, "Any place is a good place to start... having more knowledge on a subject has never hurt."

Lucy could only nod some of them were novels that explained how their magic was able to help them through challenges while others were Grimoires like what Naruto had written, she took a few minutes to select a few books, well at least she thought it was a few minutes.

When she turned around again Natsu and Grey were waiting there with books already in hand, clearly she hadn't been as fast as she thought, "Erza said she was going to stay awhile longer, something about having to talk to Naruto about something." Stated Natsu as if he had been expecting the question to come from Lucy.

Lucy rose a brow but tossed the thought to the side, it was nice to see Erza happy... even if the man she was with was even scarier than her when he wanted to be. But that smile he pulled out, it was so charming... sadly it was not directed at her, she knew that smile would be for the scarlet knight nearly every time it appeared.

The group of three walked quickly through the halls, now none of them would openly admit it, but they were lost and Lucy was sure they just passed one room for the third time.

Finally though Natsu was able to pick up the sound of metal clashing against metal and lead the group through the halls in the direction, stopping as they came out to a sandy location and Lucy bit her lip to stop a small gasp from flying out at the rippled chest of Naruto.

Him and Erza were standing on top of small wooden posts that littered the area and taking small breaths a few places from on another at the moment. It quickly changed as Erza tightened her hand around her blade and leapt forward only for Naruto to move to the post that was just to his left and quickly parry, the action caused Erza to fall off-balance to quickly have to adjust herself with a small hop to the next post before spinning just in time to block Naruto's strike.

She managed to block it fine as he wasn't going too fast but she could still feel the strength he was pressing down against her, Erza tilted her blade to the side and watched his slowly follow the slope before he jumped into the air and rolled over her striking down as he passed which sent her forward from its strength.

He landed with sure footing with his back facing her, he slowly raised the black katana he had been swinging it slowly fall away to show it was but a kitchen knife, he really liked that he learned such a wide way to use his magic, it had so many more uses than he had first thought, "The others are here to see you, either that or they got lost... actually I am starting to think its the second one." Taunted Naruto as he turned to face them and pushed off from the post landing a few steps away from the group.

Natsu was strong in his own right but some of the things Naruto was able to do were just not human... then again the man could grow wings and a tail, but then so could Mira... did that mean she wasn't human as well? The thoughts continued on a somewhat downward spiral from there and his eyes continued to go wide as the blonde walked up to him and gave his forehead a small poke.

"Erza, I think Natsu broke... can we get a new one?"

Erza gritted her teeth for a moment but just gave a tired sigh while Lucy widened her eyes in understanding of her words yesterday, "We can't get a new Natsu that would be rude."

"Oh... but I know a guy?" The small stare he got from Erza was all the response he needed, the blonde gave Natsu a strong flick in the head sending him to the ground but waking him up in the process, "Look I fixed him!"

Naruto's cheering was cut short as a flash of light appeared next to Lucy causing his eyes to narrow and his hand to twitch, his reactions were not worth it in the end as it was just Loke, dressed in a nice suit, his glasses and cocky smile in place, "You are looking better Loke... or is it Leo now?"

"W-wait you knew Loke was a spirit?" The group exclaimed causing the blonde to scratch his head sheepishly.

"Well yeah, but he told me not to tell anyone... I am pretty good at keeping a secret ya know?!"

Loke watched with rather curious eyes as Erza came to stand next to the blonde, they were much closer than a normal pair of people would stand causing him to smile, it was good to see them finally start to form something.

A light bulb went off above the Spirit's head, "Oh yeah before I forget I have these tickets for you guys, I was going to take some girls out with me but with what you guys have helped me with I think it's better if you take them."

The group looked between Naruto and Loke for a few moments and the lion quickly added, "If it wasn't for Naruto I would have never spoken to Lucy and have just died out quietly with only him and Master knowing the truth."

Naruto poked his tongue out at the group before giving a small laugh when Loke handed him a ticket and patting the Spirit on the head calmly, "A chance to relax sounds like fun."

"I agree, thank you Loke," Informed Erza as she took the ticket as well, a few words were exchanged between the group before Loke returned to the spirit world and Naruto showed them to the door, they explained how they had gotten lost and he found it rather funny, he had done the same when he first moved into the house...not that he would tell them that though.

"I'm actually impressed you were able to keep your clothes on the entire time you were here Grey... maybe we are making progress with you yet," Taunted Naruto causing the black-haired stripper to widen his eyes as he noticed the fact as well, "And Natsu didn't break anything... keep up the good work you two."

They both gave a stern nod and flashed cheeky grins before saying their goodbyes. "Thank you for the books Naruto, I'll take good care of them. See you tomorrow!" She finished with a small wave leaving only Erza who scratched at the ground with her foot nervously.

"Is it okay if I stay the night?" She breathed out quickly, Naruto rose a brow in response.

"It's fine, but we should probably go back to yours first so you can pack for tomorrow right?"

Erza blinked a few times as she processed what he said, she had in fact forgotten about packing for tomorrow until he brought that up, frantically she ran back and forth panicking over what to pack, a pair of arms stopped her and brought her towards a topless chest, "It's okay we will figure it out as we go."

She didn't knew whether he was referring to her packing luggage or them... but either way with Naruto by her side she felt a lot more comfortable in doing anything, things were really starting to look up for her.

* * *

**PA: Erza and Naruto are together? Those of you that have been reading Black Knight are probably going 'Okay what has this sick bastard got in store now.' There was a bit of foreshadowing here bu coming up to ToH there was bound to be. I hope you all enjoyed the chapter and look forward to the next update.**


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